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The Guide to Apple AirTags for Luggage

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Trackers like Apple AirTags have quickly become essential tools for travelers to keep tabs on checked luggage. By placing a quarter-sized tracker in your bag, you can use the worldwide network of Apple devices to track exactly where your stuff is — whether in the belly of the airplane you just boarded or left behind at the airport.

Apple AirTags can be placed in carry-on luggage to alert you if you left a bag behind or if someone takes your carry-on bag by accident (or on purpose).

You need to go through a few steps before you can use Apple AirTags for luggage tracking . Let's show you how to set them up and use them when you travel.

Note: Apple AirTags work only with Apple devices.

» Learn more: How delayed baggage compensation works

How to set up an Apple AirTag tracker

The first step to setting up your Apple AirTag tracker is to prepare your Apple device for pairing. You'll need an updated iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch with two-factor authentication turned on.

Next, ensure Find My and Bluetooth are turned on and you have a strong Wi-Fi or cellular connection. Finally, you'll need to turn on location services (Settings > Privacy > Location Services) if it isn't active already.

Once your device is prepared, the next step is to pair your AirTag. If you bought your Apple AirTag new, remove the wrapping around the AirTag and pull the tab to activate the battery. You should hear a sound when you do so. If you don’t, you may need to replace the battery.

Hold your AirTag near your Apple device. Doing so should pop up a screen asking whether you want to connect. If you have issues connecting, make sure no other active AirTags are nearby and potentially swap out the battery.

You can also try using the Find My app to set up your Apple AirTags.

(Image courtesy of Apple)

Once your AirTag is connected to your Apple device, name your AirTag and select an emoji to indicate what the AirTag will be used to track. Go through the onscreen steps to register your AirTag to your Apple ID and complete setup.

» Learn more: The best airline credit cards right now

Using Apple AirTags for luggage

After your Apple AirTags are set up, you can use them to track your luggage. Make sure you have at least one AirTag per bag you want to track. In addition to placing an AirTag in checked luggage, consider placing an AirTag in your carry-on bag.

For carry-on bags, you can turn on the "Notify When Left Behind" option to alert you if you're separated from your carry-on bag — such as leaving it in the lounge or on board the plane when disembarking.

Before setting off on a trip, open your Find My app to check that each Apple AirTag shows in your Items tab. If not, you may need to remove and reinsert your battery or even replace the battery for the AirTag to work.

Throughout your journey, you can see when your AirTag is within range of your Apple device, typically about 30 feet.

If outside that range, you may still be able to see the approximate location of your luggage because of the network of around a billion Apple devices with Bluetooth capabilities. Using this network, you'll likely be able to watch your checked bag's journey through the airport to your aircraft.

If you're within range of your AirTag but aren't quite sure where it is — say within a lost luggage office — you can also prompt your AirTag to play a sound. To do so, go into your Find My app and choose your AirTag from the Items tab. Then click "Play Sound." Before you do, alert the airport and airline staff to avoid security concerns.

If your bag is misplaced, you can mark your AirTag as lost. Doing so will let you add a message saying the item is lost and list a phone number and email address. If someone finds your AirTag, they can scan it with their Apple device to find your contact information.

» Learn more: What happens if an airline loses your luggage?

Using points and miles to buy AirTags

If you don't have an Apple AirTag, you may not have to pay out of pocket to get one. Here's how you can redeem bank points for Apple AirTags.

Chase Ultimate Rewards® points

Generally, Chase Ultimate Rewards® points can be redeemed for 1 cent per point toward Apple purchases. However, a couple of times yearly, Chase offers bonus value toward purchases of Apple products.

For instance, early in 2023, cardholders could redeem Ultimate Rewards® points toward purchases of Apple products at up to a 50% bonus. Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders got the full 50% bonus, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card cardholders got a 25% bonus, and cardholders with any of the four Chase Freedom cards got a 10% boost.

During one of these promotions, a four-pack of Apple AirTags costs:

6,600 Chase Ultimate Rewards® points for Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders.

7,920 Chase Ultimate Rewards® points for Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card cardholders.

9,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards® points for Chase Freedom cardholders.

» Learn more: Calculator: The value of Chase Ultimate Rewards® points

American Express Membership Rewards points

To buy AirTags with AmEx Membership Rewards points, you must first redeem points for an Apple gift card. Membership Rewards points can be redeemed for Apple gift cards in increments of $10, $25, $50, $100 or $500.

Each of those redemption options nets just 0.85 cents per point in value. That's a pretty crummy redemption rate; you can get around 2 cents per point in value when redeeming Membership Rewards points through transfer partners. However, you might still want to take advantage of this redemption option if you want to reduce your out-of-pocket travel costs.

Unless you catch an Apple AirTag sale, you'll likely want to redeem 11,765 Membership Rewards points for a $100 gift card to purchase a four-pack of Apple AirTags for $99 plus tax.

Apple tag trackers recapped

Apple AirTags were introduced in 2021. In the few short years since, AirTags have quickly become an invaluable tool for keeping track of your stuff — from car keys to backpacks.

However, Apple AirTags have perhaps found the most unexpected success in tracking luggage, particularly after a few high-profile airline operational meltdowns .

AirTags are a relatively cheap and easy way to keep tabs on your luggage, making them a helpful accessory for Apple-owning travelers.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2024 , including those best for:

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

on Chase's website

1x-5x 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

60,000 Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

1.5%-6.5% Enjoy 6.5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel; 4.5% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 3% on all other purchases (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year). After your first year or $20,000 spent, enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

$300 Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back!

on Capital One's website

2x-5x Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options.

75,000 Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

How to track your luggage with Apple AirTags

In a summer when airlines have literally dropped the bag in terms of lost luggage, with mountains of suitcases stacked in London's Heathrow Airport (LHR ) and some airlines leaving behind checked bags altogether , many travelers have decided to use Apple's AirTag tracking device to find their bags, even when the airlines can't .

The AirTag, a silver disc slightly larger than a quarter, uses the global network of Apple iPhones to track its location. The device sends a signal via short-range Bluetooth communications to iPhones in its vicinity and triangulates a location from them which it then sends back to your iPhone.

Airlines like Alaska are experimenting with putting electronic tracking devices of their own design on luggage, a process that will perhaps become standard at some time in the future (and certainly could cause more airline baggage fee surcharges ).

For now, though, the most popular option to electronically track a bag (or your keys or via an off-label use, your pet) for iPhone users is the AirTag.

AirTags are available individually or in a set of four. Prices generally range from $27.50 - $29 for a single AirTag or $99 to purchase a four-pack , though occasionally deals come along that can reduce the cost and maximize the value of your credit card points.

Here we'll go through the basics of setting one up for yourself and how best to use it.

With the free TPG app , you can track your progress toward your next trip and get spending recommendations to help you reach your travel goals.

How to set up an Apple AirTag

Before purchasing an AirTag , it's important to know the tracking device only works with iPhones and other Apple devices. If you have an Android-based mobile phone, you'll need to purchase a non-iPhone tracker like Tile or Chipolo (stay tuned for the TPG guide to Android trackers).

To get the most out of an AirTag, your iPhone should ideally be a model 11 or higher (to enable precision tracking). The operating system should be iOS 14.5 or higher. You'll be fine if you bought your iPhone in the past few years.

To operate the AirTag, enable your phone's Bluetooth (accessible through the top pulldown menu). It's helpful to have "precise location" turned on in your settings, particularly if you're trying to track the AirTag to a location near you.

Connecting your AirTag

Connecting your AirTag to your iPhone is about as easy as it gets. Remove the silver disc from the sleeve it came in, remove the plastic insert and place it next to your phone. Within about 20 seconds, the phone will pair with the AirTag, without any action required.

Next, the phone will request that you share your location (very helpful to do so), then prompt you to create a name and icon for your AirTag. I named the tag "TPG test" for this exercise and used an airplane icon. If you have a set of four AirTags, add a little variety in the naming and icons so you can remember which bag is which. For example, you could name one your luggage and choose the bag icon.

Once you name your AirTag, your phone will start you off with a screen showing tracking options. You can see where the AirTag is on a map and view directions to get there.

You can also select "Play Sound," which is helpful if you're looking for lost keys or if your bag is buried under a luggage mountain in Heathrow. You can also use verbal commands with Siri to ask the phone to locate the AirTag for you.

Familiarize yourself with the Find My app

Tracking the AirTag is usually done through the iPhone's "Find My" app. All iPhones come installed with the app, which tracks the location of other Apple devices like laptops and iPads.

Just click on the "Find My" app icon on your phone's main screen, hit the "Items" button, and you should see your chosen AirTag icon (in this case, an airplane). If you have multiple Apple devices, you'll also see them on the screen by touching the "Devices" button.

You can zoom in and out on the map within the "Find My" app. Zoom out if you don't know what city, state or continent your airline might have dropped your luggage in. If you zoom in as far as about a 100-foot-wide map area, you'll be able to track the precise location.

The official iPhone Bluetooth range is 800 feet (which means if you or anyone with an iPhone passes within 800 feet of an AirTag, you can track it). However, the effective Bluetooth range varies based on surrounding conditions and obstructions like buildings and electronic interference.

In the below photo of the "Find My" app, the AirTag correctly registers as "With You" when the item is with you.

When you leave an AirTag behind or are not near it, you'll get a different notification.

How to use the Apple AirTag

Now that you're set up with the AirTag, it's time to release it into the wild. Just place one safely inside your luggage or you can attach it with a keychain or luggage tag accessory, though that comes with more risks.

Among some of the more popular AirTag accessories are the Belkin AirTag case with key ring (I use this with my AirTag), a four-pack of Eusty keychains and the Hawanik wallet with AirTag holder.

You can even buy dog collars that you can put the AirTags into to keep watch over your pooch.

Note that several TPG staff have lost AirTags that they attached to the outside of their luggage. If you put it there, be sure to fasten it securely. Alternatively, just skip that idea and place it in an outside pocket of the bag. You may lose some Bluetooth range since it's inside a bag, but this is better than losing the AirTag completely.

I tested my AirTag by sending it via car and foot around the Portland, Oregon, metro area. The region is fairly densely populated but has substantial undeveloped areas, combining connectivity with gaps in coverage.

Using the "Find My" app within the confines of an outdoor mall (which included an Apple store) and my phone's precise tracking turned on, the AirTag tracked very well, particularly within Bluetooth range.

But I was a little surprised that there were some gaps in coverage. even in this crowded tech-using area. The AirTag icon changed from a specific location to a more general blue circle covering a large section of the mall.

In other words, don't expect your AirTag to deliver exact real-time tracking of your bag as it moves around within an airport, for example. It's common for it to not display real-time updates as it moves through the bowels of the luggage handling section of the airport. However, it would be reasonable to use the AirTag to try to find your luggage within a specific baggage claim area.

Once I sent my AirTag out on a highway trip around Portland, the tracking became less precise and more intermittent. The looser tracking makes sense because the AirTag needs to be within contact distance of an iPhone, which will not always take place while driving at full speed on a highway.

Unfortunately, the location will not update or get more specific if there are no iPhones or other Apple devices nearby. Your AirTag can go "off the grid" if no devices are within its Bluetooth range. The "Find My" app will show you a "last updated" figure in minutes or hours to let you know how long it's been since it was detected by the network.

In the screenshot below, the "Find My" app correctly tells me my AirTag is on the highway near downtown Portland. It even registers that the AirTag is in the southbound lanes of Interstate 5.

Note the "last updated" feature, which tells me this location was accurate as of 14 minutes ago and that the AirTag is currently "Not Reachable." So in real-time, my bag could be on the opposite side of town at this point.

Getting directions

If you hit the directions button within the "Find My" app, the phone will take you into the mapping function. It will provide driving, walking or biking directions you can use to reunite with your AirTag, as well as an estimated time to get there.

AirTag's Lost and Notification functions

The AirTag works with the "Find My" app to help you if your item is lost or you just want to keep an eye on where it is. You can turn on Lost Mode by selecting "enable" for that icon for a specific AirTag. You can also add your phone or email address to the AirTag with a notification for any other iPhone user who might find it.

For someone to contact you, you must allow notifications from the "Find My" app.

You can help other AirTag users if you find a piece of luggage or a keychain with an AirTag attached. Just hold your phone near the AirTag. A notification should appear sharing either basic AirTag data or full contact information should the AirTag have been marked as lost.

Related: What it's like to use AirTags to track your luggage

What the AirTag can't do

An AirTag can't really help you if you don't use an iPhone. Stay tuned for TPG's guide to Android alternatives to AirTags (which include Tile and Chipolo).

Also, an AirTag cannot track items out of the range of iPhones. If your bag falls off a delivery truck in the remote countryside, you may be out of luck unless an iPhone-toting pedestrian happens upon it. Likewise, if you're using it to track your pet and Spot wanders off into the woods, you likely won't get a signal if they end up away from civilization.

The lack of updates can be frustrating if you're trying to track the delivery of a lost bag or if your AirTag suddenly loses contact just as you're getting close to it.

Additionally, an AirTag doesn't track historical data. While it may be interesting to see your missing bag's entire journey — and possibly useful in contradicting airline claims they had sent it for delivery — you'll have to make do with screenshots along the way done in real-time as you can't go backwards in time with where the AirTag has been.

Bottom line

The Apple AirTag can be quite useful for knowing at least the general location of your luggage during this summer of baggage chaos and for all your future travels. While it can't always provide a real-time location, it can absolutely help narrow down the location of your luggage.

So while AirTags aren't perfect in terms of supplying precise locations and real-time tracking information, they can work as an added tool to locate your bags, keys and more.

Apple AirTag Review: Why You Need This Travel Accessory if You Check Bags

This quarter-sized device makes keeping track of your luggage when you fly (at least a little) less stressful..

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Apple’s AirTag helps keep track of keys, wallets, and bags through the Find My network.

Photo by Shutterstock

Welcome to AFAR Approved: a deep dive into the travel items that we’re totally obsessed with, never leave behind, and can’t stop telling our friends about.

I’m staunchly on Team Checked Bag . I like not worrying about finding overhead bin space or bringing my suitcase into questionable bathroom stalls . It’s also a free perk on many of my travel credit cards , so why not take advantage of it?

That being said, I’m also serially unlucky when it comes to my bag actually making it to the baggage carousel. Already this year, my bag has been misplaced or left behind on six flights (one of which was on a holiday weekend in Europe, so it took three days before it was located and returned to me).

Considering Fourth of July weekend was projected to be a hellish mess and I would be traveling from Colorado to Alaska on an airline that had recently canceled a slew of flights and was in the midst of a possible strike, I decided it would be worth testing out the Apple AirTag to track my luggage, if for no other reason than peace of mind.

Apple AirTag review for travelers

Buy now : Apple AirTag, $29 for one ; $89 for four

How it works

Apple’s AirTag is a Bluetooth tracking device meant to help the user locate easily loseable items, such as keys, wallets, or bags. The disc-shaped, quarter-sized tracker can either be tucked into a pocket or attached with the purchase of an optional key fob and is tracked through Apple’s Find My network (just like the iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods). It can also play a tone and has Precision Finding (an on-screen feature that uses directional arrows and the distance between the phone and the AirTag) for easier locating.

Road test: pros and cons

During my initial test of the AirTag, I flew from Denver, Colorado, to Ketchikan, Alaska, with a layover in Seattle, Washington.

Word to the wise: Make sure your phone has the latest software update before trying to sync your AirTag. Since I picked up my AirTag at a Target en route to the airport (and cut it close to the bag drop-off time), I spent a few tense minutes waiting for the update to finish so I could sync the device. However, actually setting up the AirTag was fairly simple. My iPhone immediately recognized there was an unpaired device nearby and gave some quick on-screen prompts to finish the process.

As the airline employee handed me the checked bag tag, she said that I would see it again in Alaska, but with the AirTag, I could see where my suitcase was in more or less real time within the Find My app.

The Apple AirTag can easily be slipped into a suitcase pocket.

Photo by Bailey Berg

Because the AirTag works on the Find My network, its location is pinpointed by its proximity to other Apple devices (using end-to-end encryption, so nobody else knows the place or identity of your AirTag). The more densely populated an area, the faster and more reliable the updates. In the busy Denver and Seattle airports, the location of my checked bag was updated roughly every minute or two. And because it was never far from another Apple device, I saw it snake its way through multiple terminals before being loaded onto a truck and driven around the airport’s perimeter. As I boarded the plane for the first leg of my journey, it did, too. Even in the air (and in airplane mode), I could see that my suitcase was soaring over the West Coast and Alaska panhandle.

However, in the tiny Ketchikan airport (we’re talking fewer than five gates), the location of my bag didn’t update from the time we landed until it was spit out on the conveyor belt—there just weren’t any other Apple products in its vicinity to ping off of.

Because I’d gone to Alaska for a fishing trip, I was bringing home roughly 50 pounds of frozen seafood. Considering the fish was extremely perishable, I was extra worried about it making the plane. So I attached the AirTag to the cooler for the return trip. Being able to check (and double- and triple-check) that it wasn’t being forgotten on the hot tarmac allowed me to rest easier. I could also see it providing extra relief for pet parents who are checking a larger animal in baggage.

There are some other notable cons, however. First, it’s only possible to use with Apple products (sorry, Android people). It also doesn’t have a built-in key ring hole, so you’ll either have to stash it in the bag or purchase a holder separately (I like the Otterbox Rugged AirTag Case —it’s durable and comes in fun colors). That being said, I’d still put the device in the bag—it’d be all too easy for someone to remove it.

New share features

When iOS 17 released in September 2023, there was an exciting new feature for AirTags: A group sharing function. Users who have updated their tech are now able to share the location of their AirTags (and other Find My objects) with up to five other people. In the event that your bag is lost, this function could make it that much easier to find it.

Bottom line

While sure, American, Delta , and United all have luggage tracking apps, they’re not updated in real time like the AirTag is, and there’s room for human error . For a little additional peace of mind, an AirTag is worth it—it’s fairly accurate and reliable. I’ve already added it to my master packing list, so it’ll for sure be coming on all upcoming trips. I’m even a little excited to see how it performs when my bag is inevitably lost.

And don’t forget, if you’re flying Alaska or Delta and your bag is delayed by 20 minutes or lost, you’re entitled to miles or money.

This article was originally published in 2022 and most recently updated on September 25, 2023, with current information.

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The best CD/DVD drives for Mac in 2024

Macs don't come with disc drives anymore. These are the best for listening to a CD or watching a DVD.

The best CD/DVD drives for Mac can make the best Macs even better, considering no Mac in 2024 comes with a disc drive. With endless options, it can be confusing to decide which drive to purchase. If you opt for a CD-RW or DVD-RW drive, you can also write data on CDs and DVDs.

Considered to be one of the best accessories for Mac , a good CD/DVD drive will come in handy when you least expect it. Whether you're importing CDs to Apple Music or watching DVDs on QuickTime, a CD/DVD drive is a useful tool that everyone should have in their home.

Most disc drives nowadays are relatively cheap, which means you'll be able to find a good option for less than $50. Here are the best disc drives available on the market with lots of options to fit any budget.

Cupertino's own

Apple's SuperDrive is a CD/DVD drive that perfectly complements your Mac. You'll need a USB-A to USB-C adapter for newer Macs, but considering it's not much larger than a CD case, it fits snugly in your computer bag without taking up a lot of room.

USB-C compatible

This super slim drive has both USB and USB-C cables, so you don't need a dongle to use it with old and new MacBooks alike. It also has impressive read and write speeds, which means if you have a lot of burning to do, it won't take forever. If you're going to be using your new optical disc drive regularly, this is the best option for you. 

No adapter needed

I have this model of CD/DVD drive for my Mac for multiple reasons. For one, it's practically the same as Apple's SuperDrive in every way, and it's also got a USB-C cable so I can connect it to my MacBook Pro without needing any additional adapters. Finally, it also comes with a USB-A adapter, so I can connect it to any standard USB port.

USB-C and USB 3.0

This slim and compact disc drive has no eject button, but you can tuck it away in your backpack easily. Preprogrammed for both Mac and Windows, you shouldn't need to do any formatting to get it to work. Plus, this drive has both USB 3.0 and USB-C cables.

Inexpensive choice

LG makes a CD/DVD drive that is lightweight, fast, and doesn't cost much. It's made of a hard shell plastic material, so it will not feel as sturdy as Apple's SuperDrive or Confoly's USB-C drive. However, in exchange, you get something that's about as light as a CD in its case.

Also worth considering

Weighing just 12 ounces, this CD/DVD burner is compact, lightweight, and USB-powered. It's a solid choice if you need to back up sensitive data, as well as music and video libraries because it comes with a range of software included to get you up-and-running quickly and easily.

Back to the top ^

Which is the best disc drive for Mac?

In our guide above, we've selected the ASUS ZenDrive U9M as our favorite pick since its read and write speeds are impressive, and you don't need a dongle to use it with your newer Mac — like the M2 Mac Mini .

If you're working with a small budget, take a look at the LG Electronics 8X USB 2.0 Super Multi Ultra Slim Portable. It's lightweight, fast, and doesn't cost too much, making it a perfect compliment to an already expensive 16-inch M2 MacBook Pro

Why do you need a CD/DVD drive for Mac?

You can always trust iMore. Our team of Apple experts have years of experience testing all kinds of tech and gadgets, so you can be sure our recommendations and criticisms are accurate and helpful. Find out more about how we test.

It may seem like the time of the disc drive is behind us, but they're actually still really useful to have around. It's worth having a CD drive for the times that you do need one, which can happen surprisingly often. 

You might want to digitize your DVD or music collection, for example. Or watch a movie that you own on DVD and don't want to buy on streaming again. With an external drive, you can do this on your Mac without having to jump through hoops.

One of the biggest reasons is legacy data recovery. Maybe you've got years of files that you need to view and access on CDs and DVDs. An external disc drive will let you do that without a drive in your machine itself.

And, with CDs becoming increasingly popular again, just like the revival of the vinyl record in previous years, you could even get a new hobby out of your disc drive purchase.

How do you find the right CD/DVD drive for your Mac?

There are many different CD/DVD drives on the market, so how do you find the right one for your Mac? 

• Connectivity — You'll need to check how your drive connects to your Mac first and foremost to be sure that it works with your devices. For example, many Macbooks only have a USB-C port. So you'll need to be sure the disk drive you're buying works with USB-C. 
• Compatibility — Most DVD drives work with Windows and Mac, but do check the specs before you buy to make sure the drive doesn't favor one or the other or need additional software to work.
• Speed — The speed tells you how fast the drive will read and write data. This goes from 1 x (slow) to 24 x (fast). 
• Budget — You tend to get what you pay for with technology. But if you're looking for a simple disc drive for watching discs occasionally, you could get a cheaper drive than someone who wants to transfer thousands of CDs to their laptop and needs fast speeds to do so.
• Design — If you like your products to all look the same, you'll want to find a disc drive with a similar finish to you Mac. It's also worth considering when and where you'll be using your disc drive. If you need to carry it to an office, you'll want a slim and compact design that can slip into a laptop case.

Adding a CD and DVD drive to your desk is one of many ways to upgrade your Mac experience. If you're looking to make your Mac even better, we have loads of different buying guides on iMore.

These include our pick of the best USB-C portable power chargers for MacBook and MacBook Pro , the best external hard drives for Mac , and the best 4K monitors for Mac .

Or, if you want to give your Mac a makeover, take a look at our selection of the best MacBook Pro cases or the best cases for MacBook Air with M2 .

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iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!

John-Anthony Disotto is the How To Editor of iMore, ensuring you can get the most from your Apple products and helping fix things when your technology isn’t behaving itself. Living in Scotland, where he worked for Apple as a technician focused on iOS and iPhone repairs at the Genius Bar, John-Anthony has used the Apple ecosystem for over a decade and prides himself in his ability to complete his Apple Watch activity rings. John-Anthony has previously worked in editorial for collectable TCG websites and graduated from The University of Strathclyde where he won the Scottish Student Journalism Award for Website of the Year as Editor-in-Chief of his university paper. He is also an avid film geek, having previously written film reviews and received the Edinburgh International Film Festival Student Critics award in 2019.  John-Anthony also loves to tinker with other non-Apple technology and enjoys playing around with game emulation and Linux on his Steam Deck.

In his spare time, John-Anthony can be found watching any sport under the sun from football to darts, taking the term “Lego house” far too literally as he runs out of space to display any more plastic bricks, or chilling on the couch with his French Bulldog, Kermit. 

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The Best Apple Wireless Charging Stations for Multiple Devices

By Nick Guy

If you’re in the Apple ecosystem, there’s a good chance you’re all in: iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods. One way to keep each of these devices powered is to run three cords to three adapters—but the best way is to use a single charging station. If you have an older iPhone, Mophie’s 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand is the best charging station, offering fast wireless power for all your Apple gear (well, except for your MacBook and iPad) in a tidy, convenient design that’s worth the price. And if you’ve upgraded to an iPhone 12 or 13 with Apple’s MagSafe charging and mounting system, don’t worry—we have a pick for you, as well .

Everything we recommend

Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand

The best three-in-one charging dock for a non-magsafe iphone, apple watch, and airpods.

The stand-style iPhone charger and the divot for an AirPods case make alignment easy. Plus, because it holds an Apple Watch in landscape orientation, you can conveniently snooze alarms.

Buying Options

Belkin Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe

The best charging dock for iphone 12 and 13.

This multi-device charger is the easiest to use and the best looking, and it offers the fastest possible wireless charging speeds. But it works only with the iPhone 12 and 13 series.

Apple MagSafe Duo Charger

The best charging station for frequent travelers.

This is the most portable charger you can get for an iPhone and Apple Watch, and it charges at the iPhone’s maximum rate, but unlike our other picks it can’t charge three devices at the same time.

The Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand is the best way to wirelessly charge an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods every day, provided you own a handset from the iPhone 8 through 11 series. Rather than requiring you to precisely line up your phone on a flat pad for charging, as many other wireless charging stations do, the Mophie offers an angled stand that makes proper alignment practically foolproof. The cross-shaped AirPods divot properly fits either the basic or Pro headphones case, and the Apple Watch charger puts the display in landscape orientation so that you can utilize Nightstand Mode . Mophie’s dock charges a little quicker than other non-MagSafe charging stations, and none of its competitors offer such a great combination of features at a comparable price. (However, if you have an iPhone 12 or later, you should consider upgrading to a MagSafe-compatible wireless charging station like the Belkin Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 or the Apple MagSafe Duo Charger , either of which provides faster charging and is easier to align.)

The Belkin Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe provides full 15 W MagSafe charging and the best ease of use of any charging station we’ve tested, making it the best option if you have an iPhone 12 or later. Rather than lying on a flat pad or against an angled stand, your iPhone “floats” on a raised magnetic mount in whatever position you choose. Because the phone locks magnetically into place, there’s no way to misalign it, so you’ll never have to worry if your phone is actually going to charge. The dock’s design looks more sculptural than techy, with a round base and an angled metal stalk that branches off to hold your iPhone and Apple Watch. Belkin’s charger comes with the wall adapter, so everything you need is in the box, and its two-year warranty also covers your iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods if something goes wrong while they’re charging.

A charging station with room for three devices is ideal for your nightstand, but if you want something more compact to take with you while traveling, the Apple MagSafe Duo Charger is the best choice. The MagSafe Duo fits in the palm of your hand when folded up, and it’s as thick as an iPhone in a case. Compared with most wireless charging stations, that’s tiny. It will also charge your iPhone 12 or 13 faster than any non-MagSafe multi-device wireless charger—at the full 15 W that MagSafe allows—and thanks to the magnetic alignment system, you don’t have to worry about lining it up properly for charging. If you have an older, Qi-compatible iPhone, it’s still the only travel-friendly multi-device wireless charger you can get, though you won’t see MagSafe charging speeds. It does make a couple of trade-offs: First, it has just two charging spots—one for an iPhone (or an AirPods case) and one for an Apple Watch. Second, it doesn’t come with a power brick; if you buy a 20-watt power adapter (which is required for the fastest charging speeds), that brings the price up by $15 to $20.

The research

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I’ve been reviewing mobile accessories since 2012, and I’ve been covering them for Wirecutter since 2015. I’m also the author of Wirecutter’s guides to USB wall chargers and car chargers , for which I’ve seen and tested pretty much every available charging variation.

I researched and wrote Wirecutter’s first guide to Qi wireless chargers in 2017, and I have continued testing new models and updating that guide. I also wrote our guide to Qi power banks , battery packs that use the same wireless technology.

These charging bases are designed for people who own multiple Apple devices—namely, an iPhone, an Apple Watch, and AirPods—and want to charge all of them at once, presumably overnight. Like single-device Qi chargers , these three-in-one chargers work without your having to plug cords into any of your devices.

Qi (pronounced “chee”) is the wireless-charging standard from the Wireless Power Consortium, an industry group with more than 500 members, including device manufacturers such as Apple and Samsung, as well as accessory makers such as Foxconn (Belkin’s parent company) and Mophie. For a charger to be certified by the WPC, the manufacturer has to submit it to an authorized test lab . All iPhones since the iPhone 8—even the iPhone 12 and 13 series with MagSafe—use a version of Qi charging.

If you want the fastest possible charge for your iPhone, you need to use a cable—going wireless is about convenience, not speed. Affordable, wired 20 W USB-PD chargers paired with a USB-C–to–Lightning cable are about 30% faster than the fastest wireless chargers.

The other downside to wireless charging is that you can’t pick up your phone and use it while it’s charging, as you can with a charging cable. This limitation makes a wireless option better for recharging overnight or when you want to see the phone’s display on your desk or in the kitchen, rather than while you’re watching Netflix, say, or scrolling through Twitter.

Apple first stoked the desire for this kind of accessory when it announced its AirPower charging station in late 2017. The flat pad was supposed to be able to charge an iPhone, an Apple Watch, and AirPods all at once, no matter where you placed them on the pad. Ultimately, Apple pulled the plug on the project in early 2019.

In 2020, however, the company introduced its MagSafe charging and magnetic mounting system as part of the iPhone 12 lineup. Hidden magnets inside the phone allow you to connect supported accessories and charge at up to 15 watts, in contrast to 7.5 watts with other Qi chargers. The magnets also ensure proper alignment, so you don’t have to worry about your phone being out of place and not charging properly. You can find non-MagSafe-branded magnetic chargers, too, but they can’t take advantage of the faster charging speeds that MagSafe allows.

A good wireless charger should meet all of the following basic criteria, which we used as guidelines for our research:

• WPC and MFi certification: We considered only those chargers that have been certified by the WPC . This means that a charger has been tested and found to be both safe and in compliance with the Qi standard. If a wireless charger isn’t certified, that doesn’t necessarily indicate it’s unsafe or noncompliant—but choosing something that has been verified is prudent. The same can be said for MFi certification, which is Apple’s own program that supplies the hardware components for licensed accessories and applies specifically to the charging puck and MagSafe components.
• Charging speed: Most of the chargers we tested advertised 7.5 W charging for iPhones; MagSafe chargers support 15 W. We weren’t concerned about the 10 W charging that some Android phones support because people are unlikely to use an Android phone alongside an Apple Watch.
• Design: We considered not only how the charging pad looked but also how grippy the surface was for holding a phone in place, how easily we could align devices with the charging coils, and where the watch sat (some band styles may prevent AirPods from aligning properly, for example, depending on the design). We also noted any extras, such as charging or placement indicator lights.
• Noise: Some wireless chargers emit a faint (and sometimes not so faint) whine or clicking noise, which can quickly become annoying. We listened for this in our tests.
• Maker: We considered models only from companies that we knew had a good reputation for warranty coverage and customer support. Even if a charger is WPC certified, there are no guarantees it will never have a problem, and you should be able to get help if you need that.

We tested the performance of each wireless charging base by placing an iPhone 13 with a fully drained battery on the charging pad. We measured the phone’s battery level after 30 minutes of charging and then again after one hour. A good Qi charger should fully charge any phone in a few hours (and certainly will overnight), so we focused on differences in short-term charging. I first tested everything at my desk, but if I heard a sound that could be annoying, I also tested the charger in my bedroom at night, sleeping with it positioned a couple of feet from my head to see if the noise would interfere with my sleep.

The Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand is the best choice if you have an iPhone that uses regular Qi wireless charging (iPhone 8 through 11) and you want a single charging station that can power your iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods at the same time. It charges such iPhones just as quickly as any other non-MagSafe multi-device charger we’ve tested, and it’s better designed to accommodate all three devices thanks to a stand-style phone charger and a cross-shaped divot that snugly accommodates both styles of the AirPods charging case. These thoughtful design touches make it easy for you to align the respective devices so that they charge properly. Similarly, the placement of the Apple Watch charger conveniently allows you to use the watch as an alarm clock.

We’ve found through testing single-device Qi chargers that we prefer angled, stand-style chargers that hold the phone upright, for two reasons: You can more easily align the phone properly so that it actually charges, and you can more comfortably look at the screen while the handset is charging. The Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand and the Logitech Powered 3-in-1 Dock rank among the first models to bring that raised-charger design to multi-device power stations. We found that the angle made an appreciable difference in everyday use, especially at night and in the dark. It’s not impossible (or even necessarily difficult, with practice) to line up a phone on a flat charger, but it’s certainly easier to place a phone on a stand that keeps the device in the right position. The stand makes things so foolproof, you can do it by feel without even looking.

To the right of the phone charger is the Apple Watch charging puck, and to the left, a cross-shaped indentation for your AirPods or AirPods Pro case, ensuring a precise hold no matter which version of the headphones you use. Other Qi charging stations require you to align the AirPods case properly on a flat surface or in a round divot that doesn’t perfectly cradle the AirPods case as Mophie’s does, and that task can be difficult, especially without a clear visual guide. Mophie’s design allows the case to just nestle in, making charging the AirPods so simple that it’s extremely unlikely you’ll ever head to work with dead headphones.

Apple certifies only those Apple Watch chargers that use Apple-approved charging pucks, which this Mophie model does. That means it’s as safe as any first-party Apple charger for charging any Apple Watch. It works with open or closed bands and holds the watch in landscape orientation. Both the 40 mm and 44 mm watch sizes sit low enough that, if you’re using your Apple Watch’s Nightstand Mode, you can press its Digital Crown to snooze an alarm without knocking the watch off the charger. It’s a thoughtful design decision that makes the charging station more useful.

None of the iPhone and Apple Watch combo charging stations we tested filled up the phone’s battery quite as quickly as the fastest single-device charging stands we’ve tried. Since this combined charger is slower, we think it’s best for a nightstand, where, assuming you’ll be charging overnight, the slower charging rate won’t be as big of a concern. The Mophie charger powered our iPhone 13 to about 23% full battery after half an hour and 50% after an hour. Our Apple Watch Series 7 (45mm), also starting at zero, got to 23% battery capacity after a half hour and 55% after an hour.

Battery charging results on the Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand

The Mophie charger has a notably basic design. It’s an 8-by-4-inch rounded rectangle with a body primarily made of glossy black plastic. Rubber feet on the bottom prevent it from sliding around. It lacks the heaviness that you might expect high-quality materials to have, but that doesn’t affect performance. Indicator lights on the front of the charger (underneath the phone-charging stand) show whether your phone and AirPods, respectively, are charging. The lights are not terribly bright, and they turn off after a few seconds.

The power cord that you plug into the back of the Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand uses a round, barrel-style connection instead of Micro-USB or USB-C, so it won’t be as easy to replace if something goes wrong or you lose it. Mophie offers a two-year warranty on its charger and says it generally replaces the entire product rather than individual pieces under the warranty.

If you have an iPhone 12 or later and want to take advantage of the easier alignment and faster charging that the MagSafe charging system allows, consider one of our other picks below.

After we experienced intermittent charging issues while using the 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand with an iPhone 12 Pro in a MagSafe case, we reached out to Mophie, who confirmed that this is a known issue with some iPhone 12-series phones. The company has implemented a firmware update that should resolve the issue for all iPhones, and those affected should contact customer service for a replacement. If you have an iPhone 12 or 13, we think you should get the Belkin charger anyway. But if you’ve already invested in the Mophie charger and are having issues, seek a replacement. In the meantime, we’ve found removing the case can help resolve the issue.

Unlike other models, this Mophie charger can work only with the specific combination of a phone, an Apple Watch, and AirPods; that is, you can’t use the AirPods charging spot for a second phone.

The charger’s glossy surface collects more fingerprints than a detective. If that’s the kind of thing that bothers you, this model may not be the right pick for you. Both the Logitech Powered 3-in-1 Dock and the Belkin Boost Charge 3-in-1 Wireless Charger , our former top pick, are better options in that case.

Belkin’s Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe should be your first choice if you have an iPhone 12 or 13–series phone. It’s one of the first third-party chargers to incorporate Apple’s MagSafe feature, and it’s the best implementation of the feature we’ve seen so far. Not only is attaching your phone impossible to mess up, but the dock also supports the fastest iPhone wireless charging speeds, and it’s the best-looking option. The Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 costs about the same as our top pick from Mophie, and it comes with a wall adapter, unlike Apple’s MagSafe Duo Charger . Belkin’s two-year warranty covers both the charger and connected devices.

MagSafe offers two major benefits: perfect alignment and fast, 15 W charging speeds. Although you can find plenty of magnetic chargers for sale that work like MagSafe, the Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 is officially licensed by Apple, meaning it can take full advantage of these features. In contrast, non-licensed models may hold your phone properly but won’t charge at full speed.

Most comparable charging stations require you to lay your phone on a flat pad or an angled stand that conceals a Qi charging coil. The Belkin dock holds your phone in the air, attached to a magnetic charging puck, with its center about 4½ inches above the 5¼-inch round, soft-touch rubber-covered base. A circular indentation in the center of the base lets you charge your AirPods (or another phone, albeit at a slow, 5 W charging rate). A forward-angled metal stalk behind it branches off and terminates to the left with the phone charger and to the right with the Apple Watch puck.

As long as you’re using aa MagSafe-compatible phone—either without a case or with a MagSafe-compatible case —you can’t misalign your phone. You can turn it in any orientation without disrupting its charging. The sturdy base ensures that you can tap your phone without the charging station sliding around, and its rubbery underside provides enough grip that you can easily pull the device off with one hand without the dock moving. The Apple Watch charger works much the same way and supports any kind of watch band.

At this point, only Apple-licensed magnetic chargers can support 15 W speeds; models like the Mophie 3-in-1 are limited to 7.5 W. But although the Belkin charges at a faster clip than the Mophie, it’s not twice as fast in practice, as you might expect from reading those numbers. Across three tests on the Belkin, our iPhone 13 charged from 0% to an average of 37% in half an hour and 68% in an hour, versus its results of 23% and 47%, respectively, on the Mophie. Those numbers match what we’ve seen from Apple’s own MagSafe accessories, and they’re as fast as you’re going to get in charging your devices wirelessly.

Not only does the Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 work well, but it looks great, too. It’s available in either black or white, and both versions have a matte finish that doesn’t show fingerprints like the Mophie model’s glossy surface does. It looks more like a modern sculpture than a tech gadget. If there’s a downside to the design, it’s the rather bright white light on the base that indicates when that particular charger is in use. Light-sensitive sleepers might not love that light in their bedroom.

Belkin offers a two-year connected equipment warranty , covering not only the charger itself but also up to $2,500 in costs “for the repair or replacement of connected equipment damaged from surges or spikes that occur when they are properly connected to a Belkin product.” Having a two-year warranty on the dock itself is already pretty good, but that extra protection offers real peace of mind.

Our other picks are better options if you plan to charge your gear at your bedside, but if you travel a lot (or hope to in the future), consider Apple’s MagSafe Duo Charger . This iPhone and Apple Watch charger is far smaller than any other charging station when in use, and it folds in half to take up even less space in your bag or a pocket. Because it uses Apple’s MagSafe charging system, the iPhone 12 and 13-series phone will charge faster on this model than with any non-MagSafe wireless charger, and they’ll magnetically snap into place so you don’t have to fuss with alignment. Even for a multi-device wireless charger, it’s a relatively expensive option, considering it doesn’t come with an AC adapter; since it has only two charging spots, it can charge either your phone or your AirPods, not both at the same time. But it’s the only wireless charging station that’s practical to take on the go.

The first thing that sets the MagSafe Duo Charger apart from every other wireless charging station is its compact size. Coated in soft-touch rubber, the charger consists of two 2.8-inch rounded squares with a thin hinge connecting them; you can fold it up when you aren’t using it, and the magnets hold it shut. The left square is the MagSafe phone charger, which can also charge AirPods or any other Qi-compatible device, and the right side is the Apple Watch charging puck, which you can use flat or folded up for Nightstand Mode. Opened up, the charger is roughly the width of an iPhone 12 or 13 and just a little taller. Folded, it’s about 0.6 inch thick, roughly the size of a makeup compact.

The other important feature is MagSafe, which magnetically locks compatible phones in place and also allows for faster iPhone charging than on traditional Qi chargers like our Mophie pick. It supports 15-watt charging speeds on the iPhone 12/13, 12 Pro/13 Pro, and 12 Pro Max/13 Pro Max, and 12-watt charging on the iPhone 12 mini/13 mini. In our tests, the MagSafe Duo Charger was just as fast as the Belkin Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 and notably faster than the Mophie 3-in-1 , our next-fastest pick: A fully drained iPhone 13 reached 34% battery capacity in 30 minutes and 69% in an hour, even when an Apple Watch was charging at the same time. (Apple also sells a stand-alone MagSafe phone charger, but it’s no faster than the MagSafe Duo Charger.) You can charge older iPhones and other Qi-compatible devices on this model, as well, but you don’t get the same speeds or the magnetic attachment.

The MagSafe Duo Charger typically costs $130, and that price doesn’t include the 20-watt adapter you need to get the fastest charging speeds; buying that accessory brings the total price to $150, about the same as for our other picks. That’s a lot to ask for a charger that offers one fewer charging pad. But we’d never even consider traveling with one of those other chargers, whereas the MagSafe Duo Charger could be convenient if and when we ever travel again.

If you are a frequent traveler , you might like the Anker PowerWave Go 3-in-1 Stand . Its modular design makes it more useful than any other charging station we’ve seen because you can add or remove just the parts you need. The phone charging stand is actually a 10,000mAh (37Wh) wireless power bank that you can take with you for portable power, and its 20 W USB-C port can charge most phones at their fastest speeds. The Apple Watch charger is removable as well, with a USB-C connector that means it can get power from the power bank, the USB-C port on your computer, or any other USB-C charger . And the wall adapter is Anker’s Nano II 45W , which (with the included USB-C-to-USB-C cable) can be used to charge many other devices as quickly as possible, including laptops and tablets. But while these individual pieces are all exciting, they contribute to a particularly high asking price of around $180 (at the time of this writing). Despite the steep cost, the PowerWave Go 3-in-1 Stand is also slower at wireless charging than our picks, charging an iPhone 12 to 17% in 30 minutes and 33% in 60 minutes, compared to 22% and 42% from our top pick from Mophie. For most people, we think it makes sense to stick with our simpler, cheaper, and quicker picks for standard bedside or desk charging.

If you want to be able to charge two phones at once , the Logitech Powered 3-in-1 Dock is a good alternative to the Mophie 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand. Like our top pick, it has a stand-style charger for your phone and an Apple Watch charging puck. The third charging spot is flat, allowing you to power either AirPods or another phone. But the Logitech’s main charger was a little slower than that of the Mophie in our testing, it’s harder to line up an AirPods case without a dedicated divot, and this larger charging station doesn’t look as nice as our top pick.

We’re planning a new round of testing for the spring of 2023, which will pit our current picks against the following models:

• Anker 3-in-1 Cube with MagSafe
• Anker 533 Wireless Charger (3-in-1 Stand)
• Anker 544 Wireless Charger (4-in-1 Stand)
• Belkin MagSafe 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand 2nd Gen (WIZ017)
• Einova Power Bar
• ESR HaloLock 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with CryoBoost
• HyperJuice 4-in-1 Wireless Charger
• Mophie 3-in-1 Stand for MagSafe Charger
• Mophie 3-in-1 Travel Charger with MagSafe
• OtterBox 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station for MagSafe (78-80533)
• Satechi 3-in-1 Magnetic Wireless Charging Stand
• Satechi Duo Wireless Charger Power Stand

We’re also excited about a new wireless charging standard called Qi2 that the World Power Consortium (WPC) introduced in January 2023. Apple allowed its proprietary MagSafe technology to be used as the basis for Qi2’s key feature, called the Magnetic Power Profile. Like MagSafe, the WPC says this feature uses magnets to “ensure that phones or other rechargeable battery-powered mobile products are perfectly aligned with charging devices, thus providing improved energy efficiency and faster charging.” We look forward to testing some Qi2-compliant devices from a variety of companies as they start to roll out later this year.

Nomad’s Base Station Hub with Magnetic Alignment packs in three 10W charging coils, an 18W USB-C port, and a 7.5W USB-A port; either of those ports can be paired with an optional Apple Watch Mount and your own Apple Watch charging cable if you’d like to charge your Watch. The biggest difference between this version and past Base Stations is the promise of magnetic alignment, which should work with MagSafe-equipped iPhones. Unfortunately, the magnet is quite weak in our experience. You have to move your phone around to search for it on the blank surface, unlike with true MagSafe accessories that make alignment foolproof. The charging pad is not sized properly for the iPhone 13 Pro; the phone’s raised camera bump prevents it from laying flat enough to make the necessary magnetic connection. While the iPhone 13 mini’s dimensions allow the magnets to make a connection, it’s still weaker than if the phone were able to lie totally flat.

Belkin’s Boost Charge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe is a flat, three-device charging station, and one of the first non-Apple products to support fast charging with the Apple Watch Series 7 (the other is a standalone Watch charger also from Belkin). We don’t care for the flat design; it takes up more room on your nightstand and leaves your phone flat, rather than propped up at an angle, and our tests showed this model charged an iPhone 13 more slowly than our picks from Belkin and Apple.

The Scosche Base3 3-In-1 Wireless Charging Dock has a traditional Qi stand rather than a MagSafe charger, and is less expensive than our picks. But it charges quite slowly—our drained iPhone 13 got to 15% in half an hour and 30% in an hour—and the all-plastic design isn’t as nice. It’s worth considering if you’re on a tighter budget.

Belkin’s Boost Charge 3-in-1 Wireless Charger is our former top pick, and it’s still a good choice. But the biggest downside is its AirPods charging spot: Instead of a divot that matches the size and shape of the charging case, the spot is a round indentation, which makes alignment the slightest bit more difficult. The spot is also located right behind the Apple Watch charger, so if you’re using a closed-band loop—such as the Solo Loop Apple introduced in 2020—you need to fuss with the placement to ensure that the AirPods don’t get knocked out of place.

The ESR HaloLock 2-in-1 Magnetic Wireless Charger is a flat pad with two charging spaces. One is a standard Qi charger, and the other is magnetic, allowing it to grab MagSafe-equipped iPhones and cases. Because it’s not an officially licensed MagSafe charger, it’s slower than the Belkin and Apple models we list, but it’s just as fast as other third-party magnetic chargers. In our tests, it brought a fully depleted iPhone 12 battery to 22% in 30 minutes and 48% in an hour. The lack of an Apple Watch charger knocks it out of contention for this guide, although we do appreciate the particularly low price. At the time of publication, it costs $30, and that includes a 18 W USB-C charger.

The Zens Liberty Wireless Charger Glass Edition was the first “place anywhere” wireless charger available to buy, and compared with all the other charging stations we’ve tested, it more closely matches what Apple originally promised with the AirPower station. It has 16 overlapping charging coils, all visible through a clear glass top, and those coils allow you to position two phones or other Qi-charging devices pretty much anywhere on its surface aside from the very edges. This design makes placement almost foolproof, solving one of wireless charging’s biggest drawbacks. We also like that the Liberty uses USB-C instead of a proprietary charger. But it has its downsides. The Liberty is large and expensive (a cheaper version without a glass top is available), it has loud fans that kick on when you’re charging a phone, and it doesn’t support Apple Watch charging without a $45 accessory . So although it’s a neat proof of concept, it’s best suited for early adopters willing to spend extra cash to have the coolest new tech toy.

Nomad’s Base Station Pro is similar in concept to the Zens Liberty though a bit more refined, with a slimmer and sleeker aluminum and leather design. Consisting of 18 charging coils under a roughly 5-by-9-inch surface, it’s made to charge up to three Qi devices at once, no matter where you place them. The Base Station Pro claims to power iPhones at 7.5 watts and all other devices at up to 5 watts, which means that non-Apple devices may not charge at their top speeds. But in our tests, charging was pretty slow across the board, with the iPhone 11 averaging only about 15% in half an hour and 26% in an hour, and the LG V30 hitting 9% and 16% over the same periods. Those numbers for the V30 are particularly low, but the Base Station Pro likely produced such results because it hasn’t been optimized for most Android devices yet; firmware updates may change that down the line. Rather than speed, Nomad and its partner Aira, which designed the charging technology, say the Base Station Pro’s major value proposition is convenience. It’s certainly true that you can very easily throw a phone (or three) onto the pad without worrying about lining them up perfectly, but that convenience isn’t worth the premium price: The Base Station Pro currently costs $200, or $60 more than our top pick. It’s not that hard to get your phone in the right spot with a conventional three-in-one charging pad. We hope that this technology advances quickly and falls in price, but it’s not something that most people should invest in right now.

Mophie’s 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad is another previous favorite and remains a good choice. We like its simple, clean aesthetics and its attention to detail—including features such as rubber elements that ensure your devices won’t slip and a divot for AirPods. But we prefer the stand-style charger of our current picks over this Mophie flat design, and this charger is also a total fingerprint magnet, much like the screen of an iPhone or iPad.

Native Union’s Drop XL Wireless Charger (Watch Edition) has a small footprint and is the least techy-looking of the chargers we tested. Thanks to the neutral gray fabric and rubber surface, it doesn’t scream “gadget” like much of the competition does, and it quickly charged everything we placed on its surface. Aligning AirPods can be difficult because the Drop XL has no clear marking, but other than that, it has no major faults that would prevent us from recommending it if you like the way it looks.

Satechi’s Trio Wireless Charging Pad was just a little slower than our picks in charging both phones we tested. It’s a flat charger, so lining a phone up on the raised rubber ring is slightly harder compared with using a stand, and it takes up a few more square inches on a desk, but we do like the AirPods divot, the fold-up Apple Watch puck (which can also work flat), and the USB-C charger.

The Zens Dual+Watch Aluminum Wireless Charger is a good alternative multi-device charger, particularly if you charge two phones at once on occasion. It charges devices quickly and looks quite nice. But lining up the AirPods case is difficult without any markings or a dedicated divot, and even getting a phone into the right position can take a bit of finagling.

We were excited about STM’s ChargeTree as an affordable alternative to the $100-plus chargers out there, but it turned out to be a rebranded version of a generic design. (We’ve seen at least two other companies serving Instagram ads selling the same thing.) That alone wouldn’t necessarily be disqualifying, but the ChargeTree isn’t MFi-certified, and it doesn’t come with an AC adapter. Taking all those factors together, we can’t recommend it.

Meet your guide

Nick Guy is a former senior staff writer covering Apple and accessories at Wirecutter. He has been reviewing iPhones, iPads, and related tech since 2011—and stopped counting after he tested his 1,000th case. It’s impossible for him not to mentally catalog any case he sees. He once had the bright idea to build and burn down a room to test fireproof safes.

Further reading

The Best Qi Wireless Charger for iPhone and Android Phones

by Nick Guy

We’ve spent over 900 hours testing Qi wireless chargers, and we’ve found great models across a wide spectrum of styles.

The Best USB Phone Charger

by Sarah Witman and Nick Guy

No matter what kinds of USB-powered devices you own, we have picks to power them at their fastest charging speeds.

The Best USB Car Charger

by Nick Guy and Sarah Witman

We’ve tested the best car chargers, and we have recommendations for affordable, reliable options that can fast-charge any device while you’re on the road.

iPhones No Longer Come With a Charger or Headphones. Here’s What to Get If You Need Them.

by Lauren Dragan and Nick Guy

Apple’s newest phones won’t ship with a charger or headphones. If you don’t already have something that’ll work, here’s what we recommend.

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Aeromat Travel Balance Disc

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Travel-friendly balance disc fits easily into carry-on bags, supports lower back for prolonged sitting

Can be used for challenging core exercises or active ergonomic sitting

Adjust the inflation level for more challenging exercises

Made with soft and pliable PVC, free of latex

Pump sold separately

Replacement air plug available for purchase through: https://www.aeromats.com/collections/active-sitting-core-function/products/aeromat-fitness-ball-plugs

SKUs: 33299 - 12"

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Wishing you a prosperous Chinese New Year 2024!

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WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF POLO

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SENSATIONAL SOUTH AMERICA

SPECTACULAR SWITZERLAND + ITALY

MESMERIZING MOROCCO

MESMERIZING TURKIYE

HOKKAIDO YUKI MONOGATARI + ICE BREAKER CRUISE

ENCHANTING EGYPT

Charter flight.

CHARTER FLIGHT TO URUMQI - ANCIENT SILK ROAD

CHARTER FLIGHT TO URUMQI - ENCOUNTER NORTHERN XINJIANG

CHARTER FLIGHT TO URUMQI - EXOTIC SOUTHERN XINJIANG

CHARTER FLIGHT TO URUMQI - GLORIOUS SILK ROAD

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - WHITE HOK LOVE STORY BY PREMIUM CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO TOHOKU - WHITE MYSTERIOUS TOHOKU BY PREMIUM CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - WHITE HOK LOVE STORY + 2 NIGHTS ONSEN BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - WHITE HOK LOVE STORY + SKI RESORT BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO TOHOKU - WHITE MYSTERIOUS TOHOKU BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - KEMBARA HOKKAIDO BERSAMA SYADA BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - JOM HOKKAIDO BERSAMA MYRA BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - MENEROKA HOKKAIDO BERSAMA YASMIN BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO HOKKAIDO - WHITE HOKKAIDO BERSAMA AIN BY ECONOMY CLASS

CHARTER FLIGHT TO DONGBEI - BEYOND WINTER WONDERLAND

Cuti cuti malaysia.

Discovery the natural beauty of Mulu National Park

EXPLORE POPULAR DESTINATION

Central Japan

• Shirakawago
• Noboribetsu

• Zhangjiajie

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South Africa

North America

Turkiye (Turkey)

Netherlands

Switzerland

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United Kingdom

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Why choose apple vacations.

We know the business of travel and holiday management! At Apple Vacations, our unique competitive advantage is derived from our experience as a leader in this everchanging world of travel since 1996, with a great network of partners and suppliers both locally and around the world. We offer dependability, superior travel experience, diversified travel products, unwavering support and commitment to our customers.

We pride ourselves with:

Testimonial

Excellent service by its tour guide always. I joined the Seoul city tour in Dec 2022 and our tour guide Brian Wong was very attentive to all the members' needs. Read More

Charms of Greece was my first trip with Apple Vacations. Greece did not disappoint if one appreciates the stunning nature & of course the archaeological sites. Read More

I participated in a holiday tour with Apple Vacations on October 13th to Zhangjiajie. Our Malaysian tour guide, Brian Wong, was exceptionally helpful, caring, and cheerful. He made every effort to ensure our comfort and enjoyment throughout the trip. Read More

As we reflect on our family's recent journey through the captivating landscapes of Japan, we find ourselves overwhelmed with gratitude, and it is imperative to convey our heartfelt appreciation to you. Read More

We Join the gourmet japan tour and i must say me and my family were very happy and satisfied with the tour . The food were 5 Stars and our tour Guide mr Samuel was really Good. Read More

I went on the Egypt trip with my mom for the first time with Apple and I must say that the entire trip was pleasant and satisfactory. Read More

Recently went on a tour to Europe. Our tour guide, CJ was amazing! He's clearly very experienced and always took care of us as best as he could. Read More

I have travelled 3 times with Apple to China since 2019. My latest travel was to Chongqing in Nov 2023. Noted the tour guide, Brian Wong was very attentive & proactive to the travellers needs. Read More

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Borderless travel, a global win. – by leesan

About the Apple World Travel Adapter Kit

You can use the Apple World Travel Adapter Kit to charge your Apple products when you travel to different countries or regions.

Use the Apple World Travel Adapter Kit

To charge your device, attach the correct AC plug adapter to your device’s power supply. The Apple World Travel Adapter Kit works with any Apple USB, USB-C or MagSafe power adapter that has a removable AC wall adapter (also known as a duckhead).

Just slide the duckhead off, then attach the adapter for your country or region.

Find out where you can use each adapter

The kit includes seven adapters. Most adapters also have a label with a three-character code that shows countries and regions where you can use it. You may be able to use some adapters in more countries and regions than what’s listed. *

Here’s how to identify your adapter:

Australia and New Zealand (AUS)

Description: flat, angled blades

China mainland (CHN)

Description: flat, parallel blades without holes

Japan and North America (USA)

Description: flat, parallel blades with holes

Korea (KOR)

Description: round, thick pins

Brazil (BRA)

Description: round, thin pins

Continental Europe (EUR)


Description: slightly angled, round, thin pins

Hong Kong, Qatar, Republic of Ireland,

Singapore and the United Kingdom (GBR)

Description: three-prong blades

The country or region you’re visiting may state that its electrical power is within the supported range for the device you’re using, but make sure the quality of the electrical power is up to specifications. Electrical spikes and brown-outs can damage electrical equipment.

More From Forbes

Mother’s day gift guide 2024: the best travel gadgets and gear for smoother travel.

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Make Mom's life easier when she travels.

Show Mom your love and consideration for her frequent travel with these clever and convenient travel gadgets and gear that can make her time on the road easier. From health and wellness to traveling more efficiently, these are some great Mother’s Day gifts for the regularly traveling moms you know.

Wireless ChargeCard pocket-sized phone charger

Charge your phone anywhere without a power outlet.

As small as a credit card, this thin power bank now comes in a wireless version that sticks magnetically to the back of your phone and charges it without any power outlet needed. It can power up both iPhone, Android, Samsung Galaxy, Google Pixel or other Qi-enabled smartphones, which means you don’t need to carry cables with you. To recharge the device itself, it has its own USB cable to charge it up when you need to get it ready for the next use. The $80 Wireless Magnetic ChargeCard , the original version of which debuted on ABC’s “Shark Tank,” comes in three colors and can fit easily into your pocket. There is also a built-in phone grip so that it doesn’t fall off easily. It is powerful enough to give your phone between a 30%- 100% emergency boost anywhere you are.

SparkBox surprise mystery gift boxes

The Joy gift box retails for $60 each.

These small mystery gift boxes are curated based on personal mood or preferences. In each one is something to spark a new curiosity or hobby as well as find a way to “declutter” the mind and unwind. They have an artistic focus so that after opening and using the contents, there is a special keepsake to enjoy. This is a great gift for Moms to take on the road with them or to enjoy back at home with their kids or partner. SparkBox comes as a one-time ($25) gift or as a subscription (just over $22 per box with the ability to control the frequency and timing of it) where the anticipation of what is going to arrive next is part of the gift itself. Other themed boxes are more expensive, but include more products for hobbies or entertaining.

FlatPak Toiletry Bottle

This is an excellent solution to the frustrating TSA restriction on carrying a limited number of ... [+] liquids.

Stuffing TSA-friendly liquid bottles into a small plastic bag does is like a game of Tetris, and it can limit the number of toiletries people take when traveling with a carry-on bag. Matador has a solution to that problem with the TSA-approved FlatPak Toiletry Bottle that lays flat while holding 3oz of liquid each. They come in different colors and are made with a flex fabric that can easily be refilled. They are more lightweight than a plastic bottle. Plus, being malleable and flat, traveling moms can stuff more toiletries into the plastic bag without wasting space inside of it. The bottles are BPA and PVC-free; a pack of three costs $38. What a brilliant solution to a frustrating problem!

Oura Smart Ring sleep tracker

The Oura smart ring is made of titanium and extra durable.

Whether you’re a new mother or one that travels regularly, tracking sleep is key to understanding how to get the most deep and REM sleep for maximum rest and recovery. The titanium Oura smart ring monitors 20 biometric signals and health sensors to track various patterns and provide a summary of your daily activity and rest. This includes deep or light sleep, heart rate variability, oxygen saturation and even your skin temperature. The synced app can help make suggestions for how to improve health and wellness. The rings come in various colors, including gold and rose, and different textures including matte and glossy. The company will send a ring sizing kit first to determine the best ring for each person.

WhatsApp Brand New iPhone Feature Just Launched That’s Much Easier To Use

New apple id password reset issue hitting iphone ipad and macbook users, apple s iphone ai plans confirmed with new software upgrade, luxsb - official luxury scent box subscription.

This spring, there are several new fragrances exclusive to Luxury Scent Box.

Luxury Scent Box (LUXSB) is a subscription-based fragrance shipment that sends TSA-friendly, travel-sized spray bottles with different scents according to your personal preferences. You can receive a variety of options each month or order full bottles directly from the company. It is an entertaining way to sample new perfumes without investing in a full bottle, and you never have to worry about taking large bottles and having to check a bag due to liquid restrictions. When you find a favorite, the small .30oz/9ml spray dispensers can hold about 150 sprays before refilling them. There are over 700 designer or niche fragrance brands for each type of scent profile available for a monthly fragrance supply. Some of the latest are Icelandic Andrea Maack JEST (fruity notes of plum and apple with back notes of chocolate, rum and vanilla and Juliette Has A Gun with scents of dark cherry, pink pepper and jasmine. Another option is Michel Germain's orange blossom and French vanilla or French pear and lilac parfum.

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MacBook Pro won't recognize my backup disc

2018 macbook pro running Sonoma 14.4.1 won't recognize my backup disc

MacBook Pro 15″, macOS 14.4

Posted on Apr 27, 2024 12:37 PM

Loading page content

Page content loaded

Apr 27, 2024 1:52 PM in response to Domemaker

Domemaker wrote:

To do what?

Old issue, new issue, what changed?

Hold the Option key and click your TM icon in the upper right menu bar...

if the drive has failed replace it.

3-2-1 Backup Strategy: three copies of your data, two different methods, and one offsite.

More than one device, more than one backup methodology.

ref: Time Machine troubleshooting on Mac

Apple USB SuperDrive

Product Information

The sleek, compact USB SuperDrive.

Everything you need in an optical drive.

Whether you’re at the office or on the road, you can play and burn both CDs and DVDs with the Apple USB SuperDrive. It’s perfect when you want to watch a DVD, install software, create backup discs and more.

Take it anywhere.

Only slightly bigger than a CD case, the Apple USB SuperDrive slips easily into your travel bag when you hit the road, and takes up little space on your desk or tray table when you’re working.

The essence of simplicity.

You’ll never have to worry about lost cables with the Apple USB SuperDrive. It connects to your Mac* with a single USB-A cable that’s built into the SuperDrive. Mac systems with USB-C ports support using a USB-C to USB-A adapter. There’s no separate power adapter, and it works whether your Mac is plugged in or running on battery power.

What’s in the Box

Apple USB SuperDrive with attached USB-A Connector cable

User′s Guide

Size and Weight

Height: 17 mm / 0.67 inches

Width: 139 mm / 5.47 inches

Depth: 139 mm / 5.47 inches

Weight: 335 grams / 0.74 pounds

Connections

System requirements, compatible with the following computers:.

*The Apple USB SuperDrive is compatible with Mac models from 2008 and later that don't have a built-in optical drive.

*MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and iMac models with USB-C ports require a USB-C to USB adapter (sold separately) to use Apple USB SuperDrive.

9to5Mac Podcast Network

9to5mac happy hour, ipad apple event announced, finewoven winding down, apple tv fifa deal.

Benjamin and Chance get hyped for the just-announced Apple event, entitled ‘Let Loose’ set for May 7, in which we expect Apple to finally update the iPad hardware lineup. There’s also rumors that Apple is preparing to end FineWoven case production, and a weird curio that the iPhone 17 Plus screen may get slightly smaller. Elsewhere, AirPlay for hotels finally arrives and Apple is nearing a deal to exclusively stream the 2025 FIFA Club Word Cup.

And in Happy Hour Plus , Chance’s Mac broke. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join .

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• Apple announces special event for May 7: ‘Let Loose’
• Tim Cook hints at new Apple Pencil 3 coming next month
• Ross Young: New iPad Air won’t feature mini-LED after all, but a new mystery iPad is coming in Q4
• Rumor: Apple ends production of FineWoven cases and watch bands, following complaints
• Apple still has one more ‘season’ of FineWoven accessories in the works, but the end is near
• Kuo: Apple cuts Vision Pro shipments, now ‘reviewing and adjusting’ headset strategy
• AirPlay streaming launches today on TVs at IHG hotels and resorts
• Full list of hotels with AirPlay streaming support
• Report: iPhone 17 Plus to feature a smaller screen than current ‘Plus’ phones
• Gurman: iOS 18 AI features to be powered by ‘entirely on-device’ LLM, offering privacy and speed benefits
• Apple nearing billion-dollar streaming TV deal with FIFA; still in the running for NBA rights
• Yes, the YouTube app now hijacks your Apple TV’s screen saver

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