Your iPhone battery has run out, you absolutely must make a call or text, and there’s no wall socket anywhere. If you have an iPad, the solution is easy: Connect the iPhone to the tablet.
Using your iPad to give your handset an emergency charge is a trick you might not have thought of. But maybe it’ll get you out of a jam sometime.
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How to charge your iPhone from your iPad
Surely you’re aware that you can charge your iPhone with your Mac. Just connect the two computers with a Lightning-to-USB-C cable.
But did you know you can do the same with your iPad? Just use that same cable to connect the tablet and your handset, and the iPhone will start charging. It’s that easy.
It’s a trick that works with iPad Pro, iPad Air and iPad mini because they all have USB-C ports. The only exception is the budget iPad because it’s the last holdout with a Lightning port.
As a real-world test, I let my iPhone 13 run down to 1%, then connected it to my iPad Pro. After 5 minutes, the iPhone was at 6%. Power was flowing at 7.36w, and the iPad had dropped by 2 percentage points.
More power than you’ll need
The iPad has more power to offer than you might realize. A 12.9-inch iPad Pro has a 10,758mAh battery and the 11-inch version has a 9,720mAh one. When you consider that the iPhone 13’s battery is 3,095 mAh, you’ll realize either tablet is capable of fully recharging the handset.
Even the 5,178 mAh battery in the iPad mini is more than you need to keep your iPhone running while you call a tow truck or 911.
You need a charging cable
The cable you need to charge your iPhone with your iPad is the same one that came with the handset. But it won’t do you any good at home in a desk drawer. You’re going to need it with you for this trick to work.
I suggest you get a short Lightning to USB-C cable and keep it in your backpack, purse, whatever. Consider the InCharge X Charging Cable – it’s small enough to put on your key ring.
Charge your iPhone from your iPad: A useful trick
Using one battery to charge another battery is not an efficient use of power. It’s rather wasteful. But anything goes in an emergency.
If you’re stuck beside the road with a dead iPhone, juicing it up with your USB-C iPad could be a lifesaver.
