Apple introduced its first-party MagSafe Battery Pack for the iPhone 12 series of devices, and while it worked well as a MagSafe charger, most of the user feedback on the Internet seemed to suggest that it barely had the capacity to top up even a regular-sized iPhone. While Apple recently discontinued its MagSafe Battery Pack accessory, many third-party manufacturers have tried to deliver superior alternatives, and some succeeded while others failed.
The Daily Objects Surge comes with small pouch in the box which keeps it scratch-free when not in use
When a home-grown accessories brand like Daily Objects decided to have a go at it, it caught my attention. The product isn't manufactured in India, but has been designed by the brand. The Surge MagSafe power bank packs a 10,000mAh battery and offers both wired and wireless charging. Let's take a closer look at whether this MagSafe wireless battery pack does the job or not.
Daily Objects Surge Magnetic MagSafe Wireless Battery Pack design and specifications
The Surge Magnetic MagSafe Wireless Battery Pack sure looks the part and seems like someone did put a lot of thought into designing it. Its body is made out of ABS plastic, but it does not feel cheap because of the matte finish which has managed to prevent attracting fingerprints during the course of this review.
Near the top, there is an orange button on one side and a USB Type-C port on the other. Between these two, sits a simple LED display which, along with showing the status of the charge, has a green indicator to show if the battery pack is fast-charging a device. The orange button is mainly used to wake up the display which shines through the rear panel to reveal its charge (or discharge) status. When you're not charging a device, the display remains invisible, hidden under the rear panel.
The magnets offer a firm grip when snapped onto an MagSafe-compatible iPhone, and does not come off easily
There's also a nice kickstand around the back of the Surge power bank which is made out of metal and folds outwards enough to make the iPhone's display clearly visible when placed on the battery pack vertically. The iPhone can also be placed horizontally for viewing videos or for using the new Standby mode (available with iOS 17) when charging.
The alignment of the MagSafe magnets is perfect. I tried this on two iPhones, an iPhone 14 Plus and an iPhone 14 Pro, and they aligned perfectly with the battery pack having a tight grip and stuck to them like a leech. Once mounted, there's a very small chance that the charger will detach itself from the phone accidentally, whether it's in a backpack or in your pocket. There is a good amount of force needed to separate the charger from the iPhone once mounted and this is something that I really liked.
When snapped onto an iPhone 14 Pro, it's as broad as the width of the iPhone but about an inch shorter in terms of height. This is because the placement of the MagSafe magnets is closer to the top edge of the charger, which keeps the phone floating above the bottom edge of the charger. When snapped onto an iPhone 14 Plus, the phone easily covers it on all sides sitting about 2-inches higher at the top with no extra space left at the bottom.
The mounting position for both regular and Plus or Max-sized iPhone models is different
The charger weighs 209g which makes it as heavy as the iPhone 14 Pro or the iPhone 14 Plus. While it does appear chunky when snapped onto the iPhone 14 Pro, it felt compact when attached to a 14 Plus given the phone's larger overall size. I found the charger compact enough for it to easily slide down my regular-fit jeans pocket, but clearly isn't fitting into any slim-fit jeans.
DailyObjects Surge Magnetic MagSafe Wireless Battery Pack performance
Since the Daily Objects Surge is designed with iPhones (with MagSafe capability) in mind, I mainly tested it with an iPhone 14 Pro which has a 3,200mAh battery and an iPhone 14 Plus which has a much larger 4,323mAh battery. As per Daily Objects, the wireless battery pack can charge an iPhone at a maximum of 15W wirelessly or at 18W using a cable.
However, things don't exactly work as advertised and this is mainly to do with the wireless charging certification bit. Since this is a "MagSafe Compatible" certified product, it will charge at 7.5W only unlike other "Made for MagSafe" certified products, which can charge at 15W. In short, you are limited to Qi charging speeds, whether you are using power from the battery pack or via a wall outlet when used as a regular charger. And this also means that the regular wired Apple MagSafe charger can charge faster at 15W, but again it needs to be plugged into a 20W charging adapter to work.
The charge status indicator display remains hidden when not in use
The Daily Objects Surge is also capable of charging two devices at once, but since its total output is 20W, I would recommend only charging an accessory as the additional device and not another smartphone as it would throttle the charging speeds.
When charging the iPhone 14 Pro wirelessly, the Surge battery pack managed to charge it to 26 percent in 30 minutes and completed the charge in 2 hours and 21 minutes. When complete, the battery pack only had 40 percent of its 10,000mAh capacity left, meaning that there was only enough for another top up charge, but not another full charge.
When charging the iPhone 14 Plus, the battery pack managed to charge it to just 16 percent in 30 minutes and completed the charge in 3 hours and 26 minutes, which is quite slow. Once the charging was completed, there was just 22 percent left.
One can even mount iPhones horizontally on it for watching videos or for iOS 17's new Standby Mode
Wired charging saw better results on both iPhones. The Surge battery pack managed a 61 percent charge in just 30 minutes and completed the charge in 1 hour and 53 minutes. Since there was less wastage when charging the wired way, I could actually manage another full charge using the battery pack. With an iPhone 14 Plus plugged in, the battery pack managed a 49 percent charge in 30 minutes and completed the charge in 2 hours and 2 minutes with 36 percent capacity left in the tank. When snapped on the back of an iPhone 14 Pro, I managed to get about a whole extra day of heavy usage.
Verdict
With the Daily Objects Surge Magnetic MagSafe Wireless Battery Pack, it's all about convenience. This compact little portable charger can be twice as useful when plugged in, but is clearly better-suited for smaller or standard-sized iPhones and not the Pro Max or Plus models.
Wireless charging speeds aren't bad, but the point here is about convenience. You can just keep the Surge snapped on to your iPhone, which will keep it charged to 100 percent at all times until it drains itself. And if you hate lugging around a bunch of cables, especially if you are on older iPhones models that use a lightning cable, this is a simple and fuss-free way of keeping your phone charged when at your desk or wherever you go.
Price: Rs. 5,999
Pros
- Compact and premium design
- Fold-out kickstand is useful
- Charging status display
- Faster wired charging
- Magnets offer firm grip
Cons
- Only provides a single full charge for Plus/Max models
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