Apple’s new Smart Battery Case for the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR supports wireless and fast charging

If you need more juice for the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR, Apple has just announced its new Smart Battery cases that provide extended battery life. These cases are not available yet for Malaysia but they have revealed its pricing on the official Apple online store.

Like the previous version, there’s still a noticeable hump at the rear but Apple has made it look less ugly with a couple of design changes. The extra bulge for the battery continues to the base of the iPhone which I think it looks better. At the front, the new battery case doesn’t add a massive chin at the bottom which helps to retain the iPhone’s symmetrical look.

The Smart Battery Case uses a soft-touch silicon material for the exterior and it comes in either black or white options. On the inside, it has soft microfiber lining for added protection.

The cases are able to support Qi Wireless charging and interestingly, the product page mentions that it’s compatible with the AirPower Wireless Charging Mat. This is a strong indication that the AirPower charger is still on its way.

On top of that, they added that the battery cases can support fast charging with a compatible USB-PD charger. Of course, this will require an additional USB-C to Lightning cable which isn’t provided with the iPhone XS, XS Max and iPhone XR.

The case claims to provide up to 21 hours of LTE internet usage on the iPhone XS, up to 20 hours on the XS Max and up to 22 hours on the iPhone XR. That’s about 75% longer for the iPhone XS and about 40-50% more for the larger XS Max and XR.

According to Apple’s website, a single charge on the standalone iPhone XS is rated to provide up to 12 hours of internet use while the XS Max is rated up to 13 hours of the same type of usage. Meanwhile, the iPhone XR is listed with up to 15 hours of internet use. With the case on, the iPhone XS interestingly has the longest talk time (up to 33 hours) and video playback (up to 25 hours) among the three.

The Smart Battery cases cost RM539 and it is the same price for the iPhone XS, XS Max and iPhone XR version. You can’t buy it in Malaysia yet as it is listed as unavailable on the online store.