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Is the orange/ amber light supposed to stay on during the entire duration of the charge? I went thru 3 battery packs. They only light up orange/amber when plugged in for about 10 seconds, and then the light turns off.

Is the orange/ amber light supposed to stay on during the entire duration of the charge? I went thru 3 battery packs. They only light up orange/amber when plugged in for about 10 seconds, and then the light turns off.

iPhone 12 Pro

Posted on Jul 25, 2021 1:05 PM

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Posted on Jul 25, 2021 1:17 PM

Hi Axel,

Yes, in regards to the MagSafe Battery Pack. When you connect the USB plug from a 20W charger to the battery back, the light comes on for maybe 10-15 seconds and then it turns OFF. The light remains off.... never turns GREEN. I went to the apple store, and returned the MagSafe Battery Pack , and exchanged it with another MagSafe Battery Pack. We opened the new unit, and same exact thing happened.... we did this with 3 additional MagSafe Battery Packs. None of them had a light that stayed on while charging. Were they all defective? Or is this normal, that while charging, the amber light does NOT remain ON during the entire duration of the charging process.

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Jul 25, 2021 1:17 PM in response to Axel Foley

Hi Axel,

Yes, in regards to the MagSafe Battery Pack. When you connect the USB plug from a 20W charger to the battery back, the light comes on for maybe 10-15 seconds and then it turns OFF. The light remains off.... never turns GREEN. I went to the apple store, and returned the MagSafe Battery Pack , and exchanged it with another MagSafe Battery Pack. We opened the new unit, and same exact thing happened.... we did this with 3 additional MagSafe Battery Packs. None of them had a light that stayed on while charging. Were they all defective? Or is this normal, that while charging, the amber light does NOT remain ON during the entire duration of the charging process.

Jul 25, 2021 1:37 PM in response to kevin90210

Below is an excerpt from Apple’s support page for the MagSafe Battery Pack-


Charge your MagSafe Battery Pack

Before you use your MagSafe Battery Pack for the first time, fully charge it using a Lightning to USB cable with a 20W or higher power adapter. 

  1. Plug one end of a Lightning to USB cable into the Lightning connector on your MagSafe Battery Pack.
  2. Plug the other end of the cable into a 20W or higher USB power adapter, then plug the adapter into a power outlet. 
  3. You'll see an amber status light while your MagSafe Battery Pack is charging. When the MagSafe Battery Pack is fully charged, you'll briefly see a green status light.


To review the full document click here ➔ How to use your MagSafe Battery Pack.


Back to your question. The way the document is worded suggests that the Amber light should be ON throughout the duration of the charging process. Is your iPhone almost fully charged when the battery pack was connected and charging? I ask because the charge management feature may have an influence of the charging process and charging was put on hold. I am not sure about this one.


I recommend that you contact ➔ Apple Support and ask them the same question or have the folks at the Apple Store call other stores and confirm which is the normal behavior of the Amber light when the Battery Pack is charging.


Axel F.

Sep 1, 2021 2:12 AM in response to JGSA1

The light is suppose to go out after approx 8-10 seconds please see below , must have been updated.


my gripe is how to tell when it’s finished as apparently it light up green only for a short while so if you don’t see it you won’t know.

Apparently after talking to support they said the only way to check is to interrupt the charging by unplugging from the mains and then plugging back in to see what colour the light lights up . Pretty poor way to be honest .

Jul 25, 2021 2:02 PM in response to Axel Foley

Yep. I've read that... it states "You'll see an amber status light while your MagSafe Battery Pack is charging."


It does NOT state, you'll BRIEFLY see an amber light while charging... Like it DOES state about when "...fully charged, you'll briefly see a green status light."


In conclusion, no one knows. The folks at the Apple store didn't know. The Genius Bar support did not know either. So... it remains a mystery for now.... And I'll just stick with my Anker battery pack ;-)

Jul 25, 2021 1:13 PM in response to kevin90210

I am assuming that you are referring to the Apple MagSafe Battery Pack. The MagSafe Battery Pack will show an amber status light when it is charging. But once it's fully charged, the battery pack will briefly show a green status light. When attached to your iPhone, the MagSafe Battery Pack will also show its battery level and charging status from the Lock screen. 


I am not sure which other 3 battery packs that you are referring to, however, The MagSafe Battery Pack will show the Orange/Amber status light until it is fully charged. The answer to your question is a YES.


Axel F.



Oct 4, 2021 10:59 AM in response to markyboy75

I can tell you my light does NOT stay on more than a couple seconds when charging the case. You can confirm if the case is still charging when this happens though by clicking on the 'Batteries' app on your homescreen, with the case open, and you'll see the charge for the case continues to slowly increase. Hope this is helpful

Is the orange/ amber light supposed to stay on during the entire duration of the charge? I went thru 3 battery packs. They only light up orange/amber when plugged in for about 10 seconds, and then the light turns off.

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