POWERBANKS are a pretty straightforward piece of kit at this point – there’s a battery, in a case, and you can plug USB cables into it to charge your phone or tablet or Nintendo Switch.
As a result, powerbanks are just a generally useful thing to have anyway, but this particular product has an extra feature of particular benefit to Apple iPhone users which makes it even more appealing for them.
The Belkin BoostCharge Magnetic Portable Wireless Charger manages to combine a very good powerbank with a MagSafe iPhone charger, creating a particularly versatile piece of tech indeed.
The powerbank itself is a 10,000mAh battery which can charge most smaller portable electronics either via USB-A or USB-C connection.
The really nifty feature is the 7.5W MagSafe charger, however. It allows you put an iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 (I tested it with both) on the top of the unit and it will magnetically attach and start charging the unit wirelessly – similar to a wireless charging pad or a MagSafe-using wireless charging stand.
The BoostCharge can charge two things simultaneously – one device via USB and one via MagSafe, or two devices via USB – and also features a power pass-through functionality, meaning you can plug the power bank into a charger to recharge the powerbank battery and charge your iPhone at the same time.
The MagSafe connection also works with proper MagSafe cases – so if you’ve got one, there’s no need to take your iPhone out to charge it; you can just put the whole thing on the Boostcharge and let it do its thing.
Besides charging an iPhone, it’s still a conventional powerbank and works exactly as you’d expect – The 10,000mAh battery is enough to charge a smartphone at least twice (possibly more, depending on your phone model) and it had no issues recharging an Xbox Elite 2 Wireless Controller, a Polar Vantage 2 smartwatch, an Epos H3Pro Hybrid headset, and a Nintendo Switch.
It’s all extremely useful and the BoostCharge has done exactly what Belkin promised in my testing. Indeed, the only criticism I have – and this is really quite minor – is that it’s a bit heavy, and even that’s not really an issue assuming you’re going to have it sitting on something (like a tabletop).
It’s also worth keeping in mind that the MagSafe charging is 7.5W so not exactly speedy but it is functional and significantly better than no charging at all.
Otherwise, this really is a extremely useful piece of gear – with an RRP of AUD$79.95, it’s priced fairly, it works very well, and is very much a worthwhile addition to your household’s technology roster.
