Alongside the iPhone Air, Apple launched a battery pack specifically for the phone. And interestingly, the iPhone Air MagSafe Battery uses the same capacity battery as the device it supports.
The folks over at iFixit tore down the iPhone Air MagSafe Battery and discovered its unusual shape. Based on preliminary evidence, they concluded Apple might be using the exact same battery inside the iPhone Air.
iPhone Air MagSafe Battery Pack may hide the same slim cell
Due to its slim 5.65mm design, battery life is a big concern with the iPhone Air. While Apple says the sleek phone can provide up to 27 hours of video playback, it might not be enough in daily use. And so, to put battery anxiety concerns at rest, it also launched a $99 MagSafe Battery Pack specifically for the phone.
While not as slim as the iPhone Air, the MagSafe Battery Pack is impressively slim at 7.64mm. It can boost the phone’s runtime by as much as 65%, ensuring a day of runtime even with heavy use.
During its teardown of the accessory, the iFixit team noticed its unusual shape. It’s similar to what Apple showed while unveiling the iPhone Air. Plus, the cell is only 2.72mm thin — slim enough to fit inside the iPhone Air.
So, iFixit concludes Apple may be reusing the same cell for the MagSafe Battery Pack. The move would help streamline production and cut costs.
Shared cells, different results
If Apple is using the same battery cell inside the iPhone Air’s MagSafe Battery Pack, you’d expect it to double the battery life. But in reality, that’s not the case. Instead, it only offers a 65% boost. And that’s due to energy conversion losses, heat, and inefficiencies in wireless charging.
Wireless charging is not as efficient as wired charging. It always loses energy as heat during the process. This is why most power banks with wireless charging can only transfer about 70-75% of their stored energy to the phone. Still, wireless charging wins in everyday use, especially for the MagSafe Battery Pack, due to the convenience it offers.
Rajesh has been writing about consumer technology for over a decade, with a strong focus on iPhones, Macs and Apple’s ecosystem. He enjoys digging into Apple software updates, hardware changes, and discovering new Mac apps that make work faster and more enjoyable.
