Mophie’s MagSafe car vent charger easily powers your iPhone on the road [Review]

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Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount reviews
The Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount is unobtrusive but holds and charges an iPhone 12 well.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount uses Apple’s MagSafe system not only to recharge your iPhone but also let the handset magnetically cling to your car’s dash.

I did some road tests with it, as well as the Mophie Snap Vent Mount, a very similar device that doesn’t include wireless charging. Here’s how they performed.

Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount review

Apple added MagSafe to the iPhone 12 series to improve wireless charging. It includes a ring of magnets in the back of the handset around the inductive charging coil. This allows the handset to cling to its charger. The Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount makes very good use of this system.

It consists of a circular charging disc set on a clip for your car’s dash AC/heating vent. The disc is removable so it’s available if you want to use it in your hotel room.

The charging disc is set on a ball joint so you have some control over the angle for the iPhone’s screen.

Mophie includes a USB-C Car Adapter that plugs into the cigarette lighter. The disc includes an integrated 40-inch cable.

The mount and cable are black plastic, so they’re unobtrusive. And because it uses magnets, the accessory is far smaller than some rival iPhone car dash mounts.

Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount and Snap Vent Mount clips.
Both the Mophie Snap Vent Mount and the Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount and the use the same clip design to attach to your dash.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount performance

The clip that attaches this accessory to a car’s AC/heating vent works well. It went on easily, and hasn’t come loose over several days of testing. I see no reason why it shouldn’t stay on for months.

The MagSafe connection between the Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount and the iPhone is solid. In multiple drives in a variety of road conditions, the handset never fell off. And because it’s magnetic, you can easily switch between landscape and portrait orientations.

That said, there are weight limits. I tested the mount with the iPhone 12 in a fairly heavy protective case and it came off several times when the car hit bumps.

Just so there’s no confusion, this accessory requires MagSafe. It’s not for iPhone 11 or earlier Apple handsets. Or Androids.

Also, the phone is going to block the vent. That’s true for every phone vent mount — it’s inevitable.

Charging

The Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount charges an iPhone with 7.5 watts. That’s half the speed of chargers that are fully MagSafe compliant, but it’s the same rate as all pre-MagSafe ones. And it’s quite fast enough to be useful.

In my testing, the inductive charger increased the battery level on an iPhone 12 by 21% in half an hour. That’s the same rate as other 7.5W chargers.

Mophie Snap Vent Mount review

This looking for something simpler might choose the Snap Vent Mount instead. It includes exactly the same robust vent clip as Mophie’s new car charger, just without wireless charging.

An iPhone 12 also attaches to this alternative version with the MagSafe magnets, and the connection between handset and mount is just as solid.

Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount and Snap Vent Mount final thoughts

Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount with iPhone 12
The Mophie Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount turns an iPhone 12 into a dash navigation and entertainment system.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Attaching your iPhone 12 to your dash is a no-brainer — don’t hold it in your hand while you’re driving. And Mophie’s car vent mounts do the job well.

They give the option of charging and non-charging versions, and the wireless charging model could be just what you need on a long car trip.

Pricing

The Snap+ Wireless Vent Mount can be purchased now from the Mophie website for $49.95.

Or the Snap Vent Mount is available for $29.95 on the Mophie website.

Competitors

There are a plethora of iPhone dash mounts capable of charging an iPhone — check this list of low-cost options compiled by Cult of Mac. But you won‘t find many as sleek as Mophie’s latest offering.

Or there’s the Belkin Car Vent Mount ($24.99), another simple option for those who don’t need an in-car charger.

Mophie provided Cult of Mac with a review unit for this article. See our reviews policy, and check out other in-depth reviews of Apple-related items.

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