This $40 Prime Day Deal Is My Favorite New Must-Have Charging Gadget – CNET

There’s nothing worse than low battery anxiety — that point where your phone goes below 20% battery life, and you have no idea when you’ll be seeing a charger in the next few hours, be it because you’re on a plane, a train or just out and about. That’s why a supplementary batter is a must. For iPhone owners, there are plenty of choices, it’s the Anker MagGo 622 that I’ve grown to appreciate over the past few weeks. The black version is currently $40 for Prime Day — a nice 20% discount from the usual $50 price, or a whopping 43% off the list price.

Previously, I had — and liked — the similar 321 model. Like Apple’s similar MagSafe Battery Pack, the MagGo 321 magnetically attaches and powers recent iPhones that are MagSafe-equipped (that’s most models since 2020’s iPhone 12). However, that Anker only cost me $22 at the time, versus close to $100 for the Apple model. And it gave my iPhone another full charging cycle, while still being slim enough to fit in my pocket without any annoying connecting cords or cables. 

Read more: Best MagSafe Accessories for iPhone

But the MagGo 622 adds a fold-down kickstand. That’s a key feature when I’m traveling — plop it on the tray table of a plane or a train, and you can enjoy video on your phone in landscape or portrait mode. Have a nearby power outlet? The 622 has passthrough charging via its USB-C connector. 

Now, a few notes and caveats: 

• The Anker products aren’t officially compatible with Apple’s MagSafe standard, so they charge a bit more slowly than those pricier Apple-sanctioned products. 
• You’ll need to have a MagSafe-compatible phone case for the 622 or any magnetic battery to attach properly. And, like most gadgets nowadays, you’ll need to bring your own power adapter, as only the USB-C cable is provided in the box. 
• Lastly, you don’t get the fancy on-screen indicator of how much juice the battery has left in it (but it does have a 4-bar LED indicator on the side for that). 

But those are all basically quibbles. If I’m spending the day traveling — or just walking around — the Anker MagGo 622 is clipped onto my iPhone, ready for action.