Concept redesigns Apple's Smart Battery Case for the MagSafe era

Parker Ortolani Magsafe Smart Battery Concept (Image credit: Parker Ortolani)

What you need to know

Designer Parker Ortolani created a concept of a MagSafe Smart Battery for the iPhone 12.
Instead of a case, the Smart Battery could be a thin battery pack that magnetically attached to your iPhone.
It could also be rounded and have a light indicator for charging status.

Designer Parker Ortolani posted a concept of what Apple could do to bring its Smart Battery Case into the MagSafe era. Instead of an actual phone case, the Smart Battery could be a simple battery pack that magnetically attaches to the back of the iPhone and chargers it with MagSafe.

Mocked up a quick MagSafe battery… pic.twitter.com/LcjaGBR9MTMocked up a quick MagSafe battery… pic.twitter.com/LcjaGBR9MT— Parker Ortolani (@ParkerOrtolani) November 4, 2020 November 4, 2020

Ortolani went on to show that Apple could enable the Smart Battery to be charged by the MagSafe charger itself. If attached to the iPhone 12, it could have a domino effect where the Smart Battery charged the iPhone while the MagSafe charger juiced up the Smart Battery.

And instead of including a lightning connector like the old smart battery cases, the phone could charge directly through the battery with the MagSafe puck and the battery could charge with the puck on its own too. https://t.co/N7fv62oibq pic.twitter.com/hDioXyD2eNAnd instead of including a lightning connector like the old smart battery cases, the phone could charge directly through the battery with the MagSafe puck and the battery could charge with the puck on its own too. https://t.co/N7fv62oibq pic.twitter.com/hDioXyD2eN— Parker Ortolani (@ParkerOrtolani) November 4, 2020 November 4, 2020

The designer later posted another concept, showing a Smart Battery with a rounded top for easy alignment and light around the MagSafe ring to visually indicate charging status.

Came up with an alternate design for the MagSafe battery idea. Round at the top to perfectly settle into the MagSafe alignment magnets with a light ring around the placement for the puck so you can see when it's charging on the phone or off. pic.twitter.com/gYJyBAMsExCame up with an alternate design for the MagSafe battery idea. Round at the top to perfectly settle into the MagSafe alignment magnets with a light ring around the placement for the puck so you can see when it's charging on the phone or off. pic.twitter.com/gYJyBAMsEx— Parker Ortolani (@ParkerOrtolani) November 4, 2020 November 4, 2020

Apple has not mentioned anything about what it might release concerning its own Smart Battery for the iPhone 12 yet. If it's anything like Ortolani put together, it would be a big change from what has come from in the past.

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Joe Wituschek is a Contributor at iMore. With over ten years in the technology industry, one of them being at Apple, Joe now covers the company for the website. In addition to covering breaking news, Joe also writes editorials and reviews for a range of products. He fell in love with Apple products when he got an iPod nano for Christmas almost twenty years ago. Despite being considered a "heavy" user, he has always preferred the consumer-focused products like the MacBook Air, iPad mini, and iPhone 13 mini. He will fight to the death to keep a mini iPhone in the lineup. In his free time, Joe enjoys video games, movies, photography, running, and basically everything outdoors.