Belkin is the first manufacturer out of the gate with a charging dock that supports the faster Series 7 charging speeds. The 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe features a MagSafe iPhone charger at the full 15 watts of power, a 5-watt Qi charger meant for AirPods, and an Apple Watch charger with the updated, faster charging.
Not even Apple itself yet offers an updated multidevice charger that supports the faster-charging speeds of the Series 7 Apple Watches. To get a sense of what this product is like, I went hands-on for a first look at the new Belkin accessory.
TL;DR
Pros:
Fastest Apple Watch Series 7 charging speedsMultiple Apple Watch charging positions
Cons:
Its flat design may be less appealing than a vertical stand
Buy at Belkin.
What’s New?
Belkin released a different 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe last year, and it’s still a favorite of ours. It has a ton of functionality without any unnecessary bulk. It’s a refined, multidevice charger. It’s curious to me, then, why Belkin didn’t just update that charger to support the faster charging of the Series 7.
The previous 3-in-1 charger and this new charging pad are similar in functionality, but they are visually different. Choosing one or the other, strictly based on look and shape, could be difficult. In terms of technical differences, the only new thing here is the faster watch charging for people with the newest Apple Watch.
This new pad’s flat shape does allow it to accommodate the different places people are using these docks in their houses. On one hand, when the phone lies flat, there’s much less risk of accidentally knocking it down when reaching for it first thing in the morning. On the other hand, it’s harder to see the phone at a glance.
Nighttime Charging
Despite being sleek and mostly minimal, I don’t think this charging pad is particularly portable. It is still plenty long and requires the use of the (healthy size) 40-watt electrical plug that comes in the box.
It has a soft-touch matte plastic exterior that’s pleasant to interact with but is a dust magnet. The MagSafe charger is raised a bit on the left-hand side. I assume that is to accommodate the sizable camera of the iPhone 13 Pro and Max.
If there were any doubt that this dock was all about the Apple Watch, however, all you have to do is look at its resting spot on the right-hand side. The small charging puck that the Apple Watch lies on can flip up vertically so that the watch can be in Nightstand Mode, when it acts as a miniclock. To handle all Apple Watches, Series 0 through Series 7, the charging area can be twisted from the bottom to raise up. This height helps line up the charger with big watches or even those with third-party cases around them.
My Series 7 Apple Watch worked on each of the three heights, so I am a bit perplexed about whether this seemingly complex maneuver was really needed. Do a lot of people use cases or bumpers around their Apple Watches and need this functionality? I haven’t seen many out in the world.
How does the 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad perform? Exactly as advertised—as far as I could tell. In my initial hands-on, I kept an eye on the charging speeds for the Series 7, and it seemed to match the speed of the charging cable that came with the watch. I used this Belkin pad for a few nights, and all my devices were charged in the morning.
There’s nothing wrong with this multidevice dock—it works great as is. My one wish would have been for the Apple Watch charger to be able to turn 180 degrees. If the vertically charging watch could rotate, then I could see it better while lying in bed. But overall, what you see here is what you get.
Should You Buy the Belkin 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad?
This is a solid accessory, worthy of any nightstand or work desk. Its design is minimally elegant, but it’s not as visually stunning as last year’s 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand with MagSafe, in my opinion.
After some initial hands-on time with this new charging pad, I think it’s a neat option. It gets rid of the need to keep the faster Apple Watch charging cable dangling. Instead, I can keep that cable in a travel pouch.
Is this soft-touch matte plastic 3-in-1 charging dock worth nearly $150, though? It’s a tough sell, but it’s also currently the only option with all these specs.
Buy at Belkin for $149.95.
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