TORRAS 5000 & 10,000mAh Magsafe battery pack with wireless charging review (updated)
The TORRAS Magsafe Battery pack is a magnetically attached battery pack that offers wireless charging at 2.22 amps according to the spec sheet. It features 15 Watt wireless charging along with the ability to power via USB C also at 20 Watts. It claims to be able to charge an iPhone 15 Max 1.5 times with the 10,000, and presumably 75% with the 5000mAh version. Updates to the review are after the original review.
If you’re looking at those numbers and thinking that’s a bit off (or the Max has a larger battery than you thought,) the stated effective capacity of the 10,000mAh unit is listed in the manual at about 6,000mAh which means in the conversion from stored battery to battery in your phone you’re losing 40% to battery and wireless conversion. My bet is you could minimize that by using the cable, but the effect is if you get a 10k unit you wirelessly charge a maximum of 6K positive on your phone.
40% energy loss is a lot, although not uncommon for wireless charging. Wired is generally 8% if I remember correctly. I only mention this because if you’re looking for a backup battery, you’ll want to size up if you need to fill up, and unfortunately the 10K TORRAS Magsafe Battery Pack is not as aesthetically pleasing as the 5K version. It’s like someone stuck a very useful lead cassingle to the back of the device.
There’s a lot to like
This is something you can just slap on the phone when you realize you forgot to charge in before you head out the door. If you’re an Airpod enthusiast you can trickle charge them directly from the device (I don’t have any, can’t test.) And if you’re in a Magsafe case of any sort you now have a holding ring and a kickstand.
The use cases for it are pretty good even if the 15 watt wireless/20 watt wired power delivery is rather underwhelming.
The circular ring on the back can be used as a 90/180 degree kickstand, and also as a carrying aid.
And some to not
Unfortunately even if you go for wired you’re still charging 50% slower than most modern phones are capable of (30w).
While I did not have this issue on the 5000mAh unit, the 10,000 unit the ring was uncomfortable to handle and tended to land on my annoyance radar of why couldn’t they make it slightly thicker… but then I know they’re limited in space without these making your device look like a 1990’s monster phone.
While using these, if you’re active you’ll find your phone, or at least the Androids we tested this on, struggling to positively charge and quite warm if charged while in use. The Amazon literature says it’ll keep charging up to 118F/47.7c. I believe it reaches there and there may be some thermal throttling going on either on my test phones side or on the TORRAS Magsafe battery pack.
Overall
They’re sleek, and incredibly useful if you occasionally find your phone is dead right as you’re about to walk out the door. If you’re needing the listed capacity however, the conversion loss due to heat and wireless transmission and receiving makes these relatively low charge result for the money.
That stated in the month since I’ve been home these have saved my daughter’s Roblox campaign when her phone was dying, and my wife’s phone that our old school wireless chargers are refusing to speak to for some reason tonight.
I may sound rather down on this, but I’m not. It’s a great idea that’s hindered by physics and a lot of conversion loss. I doubt there will be other manufacturers that can surmount this in this particular form factor for a while, so it’s not a terrible investment.
I have enjoyed the 10,000 mAh and recently started playing with the 5,000 (which as far as I can tell is just sleeker and no effective differences).
These are available at Amazon in 10,000mAh black and white varieties, and on TORRAS’s website in the 5,000 mAh form factor (I can not locate it on Amazon, shoot me the link if you do). The Amazon link there is tagged and if you don’t want us to earn a commission based on this review just search for it yourself on Amazon.
Updated notes (from continued use)
While testing this out in cold weather and at the house yielded the results above, taking the 10,000 pack out on an 84F day and attempting to charge my phone resulted in thermal throttling and shutdown of charging when it was in my pocket. If I removed the phone and held it and let the air blow over it it would charge again.
This is not good for charging a phone on a warm day in your pocket. The unit also shut off charging once while watching a video, which I assume was because the phone got hot and either the charger or the phone thermal throttled to protect.
Something to consider.
TORRAS Magsafe magnetic wireless battery pack
The TORRAS Magsafe wireless battery packs are a product that's great when you're about to step out the door for a night with friends and realize your phone is at 12%.
Product Brand: TORRAS
Product Currency: USD
Product Price: 80
Product In-Stock: InStock
3.75
Pros
- Magnets adhere solidly
- Kickstand and phone holding ring
- Charges without much thought and can be thrown in a pocket
- Looks good
Cons
- High wireless conversion loss nearly halves the effective charge
- Warms up in the hands pretty quickly if phone is being used
- No heat dissipation / shuts off charging in warm environments
