DIY MagSafe Desk Mount for iPhone 12

[SpaceGrayAlways]

As I was shopping around for a MagSafe desk stand for my iPhone 12 Pro, I realized that I simply didn't want to pay a lot of money for something so I looked at what I had lying around at home. Turns out, I had everything that I needed already.

...And it works great!

Here's what I did. Took about 5 minutes:

1. Take any short-arm car window mount and attach it to your desk.
   • Suction mounts with a soft (gel-like) mount work best for this and I recommend getting a model with a lever to secure it. The one I used is an old random third party brand that no longer is available but there are plenty on Amazon for $10-$15 if you don't have one.
2. Attach a magnet to the center-rear of the MagSafe cable.
   • Most of these mounts come with a magnet with a sticky (3M type) backing. I ran out of these a while ago, but I had a metal plate without a backing lying around and attached it to the MagSafe cable using some 3M gel tape that I could always remove at a later time.
   • If you don't have one and don't want to make your own, you can buy them on Amazon for ~$5.
3. Attach the MagSafe cable with the attached backing to the car mount.
4. Pop your iPhone 12 on it!

Some thoughts on how this worked:

• When I was experimenting, I noticed that the MagSafe adapter itself can be attached without a backing to the dashboard mount. However, this magnetic attachment was weak and as a result did not hold. I often picked up my iPhone and took the MagSafe cable with it. Attaching the metal plate fixed this as these plates are significantly stronger.
• Apple notes that MagSafe charging is slower and can be slowed further if the iPhone overheats while charging. This is apparent and as a result I keep a USB-C powered Lightning cable on the side of my desk for fast charging if I need to. However, throughout the day this mount keeps me in the 90% range comfortably between uses.
• Don't put it too close to your keyboard... My pinky kept hitting it when I did that!
• A suction mount solves the issue brought up by other users on MacRumors forums about needing a weighted base.
• I don't believe that car mounts with long necks will be suitable for this, having a short neck helps keep it in place and lets me use it while it is mounted or remove it.

 

[Coolio1234]

Question, if I were to replicate this SAME setup in a car mount, would the metal plate addition be enough to both secure the phone and allow for MagSafe wireless charging?

 

[SpaceGrayAlways]

I haven't tested it in a car mount situation, but the plate definitely holds the MagSafe Cable to the mount very securely. The weakest link is the actual MagSafe connection to the iPhone 12 Pro and there's nothing that can be done to strengthen that.

 

[Coolio1234]

I haven't tested it in a car mount situation, but the plate definitely holds the MagSafe Cable to the mount very securely. The weakest link is the actual MagSafe connection to the iPhone 12 Pro and there's nothing that can be done to strengthen that.

How about the wireless charging? Does the plate itself allow the phone to charge??

 

[SpaceGrayAlways]

How about the wireless charging? Does the plate itself allow the phone to charge??

Yes, because the plate is behind the MagSafe charger and not blocking the connection to the iPhone 12 Pro, it charges as expected through MagSafe.

 

[Coolio1234]

Thank you!

 

[SpaceGrayAlways]

Thank you!

No problem!

 

[Cee Jay]

Re. attaching iphone 12 to car dash magnetic mount.... This works. I bought this car phone mount and have used it for the past couple iphones I owned. Now I use it successfully for my new iphone 12 Pro Max with no problem.
The car mount is attached to the car dash CD player by sliding part of it into the CD slot which is ok for me since I don't use the CD player, I use my phone for music. My CD player has not been damaged by using this product. Here is the car mount, it comes with the 2 metal plates. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00YZO04CQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I bought a decent case on Amazon for the new iphone 12 Pro Max at https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RNHDV2T/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and I tape the 2 metal plates inside the iphone case. The phone adheres strongly to the magnet of the car mount.