Under $50 Scores: This slim MagSafe charger is a perfect pocket companion
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I will freely and happily admit that I am a MagSafe fanatic. My MagSafe fanaticism goes back to a time before iPhones even had MagSafe. Back in the year of our Lord 2009, Palm unveiled the Palm Pre alongside an accessory called the Touchstone. The Touchstone was a magnetic wireless charger that you could set your phone onto and charge your phone. Sound familiar? Fast-forward almost a dozen years: Apple launched MagSafe for the iPhone 12, and I fell instantly in love.
Wireless charging isn’t new, but there are two problems with it. First, if you don’t align the coils just so, your phone either won’t charge or it’ll charge very slowly. Second, you can’t really use your phone while it rests on a wireless charger. You can get a wireless charging stand, which means you can look at your phone while it charges, but you can’t pick it up, handle it and, you know, use it.
That’s why MagSafe is a brilliant solution. The magnets ensure a tight connection and properly align the coils, neatly solving both problems. Not only that but, Apple being Apple, a whole ecosystem of MagSafe accessories sprang up around it. MagSafe battery packs, wallets, charging stands, tripods and even PopSocket-like grips all started to emerge.
But maybe you’re thinking that you have to be an iPhone user to enjoy this. That is not true. The Qi2 standard follows the same pattern of magnets as MagSafe, and though no Android phones ship with the Qi2 standard yet, some phone makers are starting to come around. A company that sells Android phones overseas called Infinix just launched the Infinix Note 40 Pro that ships with a magnetic charging case in the box. Plus, you can find any number of MagSafe-compatible cases for some of the best Android phones like the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra or the Pixel 8 Pro.
Batteries are a pretty obvious use case, and the Raycon Magic Power Bank Slim really lives up to its name. At just 9mm thin, this battery packs a 5,000mAh power cell in its diminutive frame.
Raycon Magic Power Bank Slim
If you have an iPhone or you're a fan of MagSafe, this slim battery packs 5,000mAh of juice. It also has a USB-C port to charge it, or you can use it to power a second device. It’s so small and light you can toss it into your coat pocket or bag so it’s available anytime you need it.
How I found the Magic Power Bank Slim
I owned every iPhone from the iPhone 12 Pro until today, but I also hated the Lightning connector. USB-C was around, so it was silly to rely on a second cable. So, in arguably the stupidest form of voting with my wallet, from the iPhone 12 through the iPhone 14 Pro, I never plugged a Lightning cable into my iPhone. It was MagSafe or bust for me. That included portable chargers. Once the iPhone 15 Pro came out with its USB-C port, that all ended, but needless to say, I’ve used my fair share of MagSafe batteries.
It’s never been really comfortable, though. Batteries by their very nature are thick and a little heavy, so bolting one to the back of your iPhone while you try to walk a trade show floor is not a lovely experience. That’s why this power bank got my spidey senses going. Having something thin and light can make that scenario a little bit better.
The battery pack itself is simple enough. As mentioned, it’s just 9mm thick and comes in any color you want as long as it’s black. There’s a bit of Raycon branding in the upper corner along with five pips to show you the charge level.
On the bottom is a button and a USB-C port. The button activates the pips to show you how much charge is left. The USB-C port is there to either charge the battery itself, plug in a cable and charge another device, or do both at the same time. That’s really it. It’s very simple — it’s a battery.
Why the Magic Power Bank Slim is a score
Batteries are getting thinner, but this one is thinner than most. It used to be that if you wanted a super-thin battery, you got — maybe — 2,500mAh or 3,000mAh. That’s not even enough to charge your iPhone once. Now the Magic Power Bank Slim comes along packing 5,000mAh (about one and a quarter charges for your iPhone 15 Pro) and it’s super thin, light and barely noticeable on the back of your phone.
The design isn’t perfect. You’ll like it more if you have an iPhone 15 Plus or an iPhone 15 Pro Max because, on the iPhone 15 Pro, the bottom of the battery hangs down just a little lower than the bottom of the iPhone. But on larger phones, it’s just about the perfect size.
If you’re heading out for the day, toss the Magic Power Bank Slim in your bag or pocket and forget it’s there. I actually did lose this battery for about a week because I’d forgotten I’d stuffed it into a pocket on my shoulder bag and a quick pat down missed it. It’s a little ridiculous how barely there this battery pack is. It can be yours for just a nickel under $50. You can buy larger batteries for less money, but the 9mm size really makes this device a score.
Note: The prices above reflect the retailers' listed price at the time of publication.
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