Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Apple’s Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro are here

By

Apple’s official Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max are finally here. The new phones were launched to the public in September, but official battery cases for the phones were absent from Apple’s lineup — until now.

The new cases don’t look all that different from previous generations, offering a relatively large bump on the back, where the extra battery is stored. The main difference, of course, is that the cases have a square camera cutout instead of an oval one to accommodate for the new shape of the camera cutouts on the iPhone.

According to Apple, the battery cases for the iPhone 11 series give the iPhones up to 50% extra battery life, which is good news for those who travel a lot or forget to charge their device. The case has other new features. too. For example, there’s a new dedicated camera button that allows users to launch the camera app, whether the phone is locked or unlocked. That button can then be used to quickly capture a photo, or you can long-press it for a QuickTake video.

Recommended Videos

The Smart Battery Case can be charged simultaneously with the iPhone 11 with a Lightning cable, plus it’s compatible with wireless charging. When you charge the devices, your iPhone will first be charged, after which the case will get charged. And, you’ll be able to see the battery level of the case on the lock screen and in Notification Center.

Of course, fewer people will likely need the case than in previous years. That’s because Apple seriously improved the battery life of the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max. In a decision that was largely praised by customers, Apple made the new iPhones slightly thicker than previous models — but the result is that the iPhone 11 Pro Max gets a hefty five extra hours of use compared to the previous-generation iPhone XS Max.

The Smart Battery Case comes in soft white and black for the iPhone 11, or white black, and pink sand for the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max. They’re a little expensive — you’ll have to shell out $130 to get any of the Smart Battery cases from Apple’s website. For some, it will be worth it — however, others might be better served with other iPhone 11 cases.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper
Contributor
Christian’s interest in technology began as a child in Australia, when he stumbled upon a computer at a garage sale that he…
Become an iPhone video master with this powerful new app
Screenshots from the Kino app.

Avid iPhone photographers will already know the excellent Halide camera app and how it can help transform the stills you take. But they will also know it does not support video, a point the company itself has been well aware of too. That’s why it has launched Kino, a video app for the iPhone that aims to bring similar Halide-style benefits to video instead of stills.

Kino is described as a video app for beginners and experts alike, but to get the most from it, you’ll likely need to be familiar with the iPhone’s video recording modes. For example, one of the main features that makes Kino stand out is Instant Grade, which uses the Log video recording mode, which was introduced on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Read more
Apple offers peek at how it stress tests the iPhone
Apple testing the water resistance of an iPhone.

Apple tests the water resistance of an iPhone. MKBHD

Popular tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee visited an Apple lab recently to see up close how the company tests the durability of new iPhone handsets.

Read more
Apple’s AI plans for the iPhone just leaked. Here’s everything we know
The back of a Natural Titanium iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Apple is the only major name in the world of Big Tech that hasn’t made its ambitious AI plans public yet. But that will change in a few weeks, with a focus on reimagining the iPhone experience. Bloomberg, citing internal sources, has detailed how Apple plans to integrate generative AI experiences with iOS 18, the next major build of its iPhone operating system.

The company plans to push new AI-powered capabilities not just in such in-house apps as Safari and Maps, but also in experiences like the notification system and a supercharged Spotlight search. Notably, Apple will push the bulk of AI processing to the iPhone’s silicon, and only a minor portion of it will be pushed to the cloud.

Read more