MagSafe cases not strong enough to hold over rough road surfaces

Submitted by WattsAGigawatt t3_zy8i65 in iphone

Not sure if this is the correct sub for this. If it’s not, please help redirect me, thank you!

I’m using a carryover Scosche MagicMount Pro from when I used the metal plates on my previous iPhones but switched to the MagSafe charger and mount plate that is included with the MagicMount MSC. Imagine the MagSafe charger portion from the MSC inserted into the MagicMount Pro and that’s my setup.

When I used the metal plates and the MagicMount Pro with my other iPhones (6S+ and XS Max) I never had to worry about the phone falling if I drove over some rough patches of road. Now with the 13 Pro Max it’s guaranteed to fall off. I’ve tried several cases and none seem to really solve the problem. My first case was “MagSafe compatible” but didn’t have the Apple magnets (circle and vertical line). I was told by someone in Best Buy’s Geek Squad that the case needs to have the MagSafe magnets to prevent that from happening so I got another case. Same problem. I tried another case (Otterbox and looks similar to the Figura series but is dark gray with speckles) and same problem. I really like using MagSafe because I had problems with the Lighting port pins getting slightly bent so a couple trips to the Apple Store fixed that. I’m thinking I need to go back to using the older mount and metal plates unless someone else has had this same issue and solved it somehow.

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4myWWW t1_j24efgn wrote

I don’t think the MagSafe magnets line up with your mount well. The magnets form a ring, with no magnetic strength in the middle (to allow for wireless charging.) I have a third party MagSafe mount from Amazon and it holds my bare phone (13 Pro) or with an Apple MagSafe case very well. My phone has never fallen, and I have to give it a solid tug to remove it from the mount.

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j24f3h7 wrote

I’ve tried at least 3 different cases so maybe the problem lies with the MagSafe charger? I didn’t think of that being the issue.

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4myWWW t1_j265qp1 wrote

My point is that if you are using the same mount you used with metal plates in the past, the mount is not the right shape to grab the ring of magnets in the MagSafe cases. You need a MagSafe mount.

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j266fdq wrote

I am not using the exact same setup when I had my 6S+/XS Max. I swapped the mount that’s connected to the base.

https://www.reddit.com/r/iphone/comments/zy8i65/magsafe_cases_not_strong_enough_to_hold_over/j24nznd/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3

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4myWWW t1_j266qak wrote

Got it. So the MagSafe charger is what is holding the phone? Yeah, I’m not surprised that isn’t strong enough on rough roads.

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winterblink t1_j24dqxv wrote

This might depend heavily on the manufacturer of the mount. I think the Spigen mounts are supposed to have a beefier set of magnets so it holds extremely securely.

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j24egxp wrote

Sorry, let me clarify. The mount itself remains on the dash as it’s adhesive. The phone falls off the Apple MagSafe charging plate so the only variable is the case and I’ve tried at least 3 different cases. So it seems that, assuming the MagSafe magnet array in the cases come from Apple suppliers, the problem will be pervasive and unavoidable.

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winterblink t1_j24g4mr wrote

Gotcha. Does the mount have its own set of magnets? That’s why I mentioned that some brands have a stronger set of counter magnets than others to keep the phone attached since the MagSafe ones on the phone alone probably won’t cut it.

As you say, it’d lead to the device falling off.

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j24hyvg wrote

I can switch out the MagSafe charger for the standard MagicMount and then add a plate to my phone. That combination is super strong and worked very well for my past two phones. I only switched to MagSafe due to the problems I was experiencing with slightly bent Lighting port pins and also dust in the port. At home I charge via Lightning so might as well go back to the old MagicMount.

Oops, didn’t answer your first question. No, the point where the phone meets the MagSafe charger relies solely on the MagSafe magnets in both the case and MagSafe charger to keep the phone in place. I’m guessing that it’s just not strong enough to handle the roads I drive on daily or the occasional rough spot on the freeways.

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nikhillem t1_j24l4ni wrote

This is the mount I use and it’s super strong and has a good wireless charger. Doesn’t shake at all with or without case https://www.amazon.com/dp/B096SQ8MQ7?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j24nznd wrote

That looks interesting. Can the charge plate be removed from the air vent clip and retain its ball joint? If it can, I wonder if it’s compatible with the Scosche MagicMount.

This is essentially my setup but with the Scosche MagSafe charger.

https://www.scosche.com/magicmount-pro-dash

This is another photo I found on their site:

https://preview.redd.it/sfsves23vw8a1.jpeg?width=225&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dcff5f086d25d47b49c8ad3b03d5ea8c5606fd86

That’s what my setup looks like. It’s the adhesive MagicMount with the MagSafe charger.

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nikhillem t1_j25q4q1 wrote

Yes you can remove the charge plate because you can swap it between the vent clip or the stationary mount

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j25ryhw wrote

Okay, thank you! I’ll try that one. If it fits the MagicMount ball socket and is really that strong, we may have a winner!

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MrsBenSolo1977 t1_j26fz5q wrote

You have to use a mag safe mount. Also most non-Apple mag safe cases aren’t as strong of magnets as Apple’s in my experience.

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Content-Artichoke541 t1_j26sll5 wrote

You need a magsafe mount, even the cheap magsafe mounts from amazon should work fine. Then when you get one of those magsafe mounts, try a caudabe sheath. The strongest magsafe you will find.

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j28arf3 wrote

I am using a MagSafe mount with a MagSafe case.

https://www.reddit.com/r/iphone/comments/zy8i65/magsafe_cases_not_strong_enough_to_hold_over/j24nznd/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3

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Content-Artichoke541 t1_j2bbpen wrote

Try a caudabe sheath case or a phone rebel gen 4 case Those 2 are the strongest magsafe magnets i’ve ever used

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WattsAGigawatt OP t1_j2blj06 wrote

Nice cases! I really like Rebel cases because I used to have a Pitaka aramid case for my XS Max but the Gen 4 case only fits the 13 not my 13 Pro Max.

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Content-Artichoke541 t1_j2bmd6m wrote

Get the gen 3 then. It is compatible with the 13 series. Just got a gen 4 for 14 pro max and the magnets are amazing

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