Canyoncat

Q: Why is the watch charger magnetic head getting hot?

Whether connected to the watch or not the magnetic charging head gets so hot it almost burns my fingers. The watch will not charge on it anymore, so I switched the watch into preservation mode to keep it from totally running out of power.

Watch Standard 42mm, iOS 8.3

Posted on May 17, 2015 8:32 AM

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Q: Why is the watch charger magnetic head getting hot?

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Meg St._Clair,Helpful

    Meg St._Clair Meg St._Clair May 17, 2015 9:01 AM in response to Canyoncat
    Level 9 (58,370 points)
    iPhone
    May 17, 2015 9:01 AM in response to Canyoncat

    Sounds like it's defective. Make an appointment at the Genius Bar at your local Apple Store. Or, use the Contact Us link at the bottom right of every page for information on how to contact Apple.

  • by creeseas,

    creeseas creeseas May 19, 2015 6:27 AM in response to Canyoncat
    Level 1 (5 points)
    May 19, 2015 6:27 AM in response to Canyoncat

    I had the same thing happen.  I figured out it was the usb charger plug it was attached to.  It happened to me in the car.  Some work well, some don't.  It's a trail and error situation.  I used the same "apple charger cord/puck" that was so hot to the touch and wouldn't charge my watch (after it cooled down) with a different usb aux charger plug and it worked.  Be careful what you use for power.  It charges my iPhone 6 just fine with the lightning cord, but almost caught on fire with the watch charger puck.  Apple really needs to fix this issue before someone's house or car catches on fire...

  • by szymonrules ,Solvedanswer

    szymonrules szymonrules May 19, 2015 7:18 AM in response to Canyoncat
    Level 1 (11 points)
    May 19, 2015 7:18 AM in response to Canyoncat

    I Would confirm with Apple that the charger that you're using, and if it's compatible. If you're using the original Apple Watch charger, I would get the charger and power brick replaced. It's normal for the charger to get warm or even a little hot during charging, but not when it's just sitting There!

  • by Canyoncat,

    Canyoncat Canyoncat May 19, 2015 12:57 PM in response to Meg St._Clair
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 19, 2015 12:57 PM in response to Meg St._Clair

    Thank you for the Genius Bar suggestion. I took the charger, cable and watch in and it didn't take 20 seconds for them to determine the cable with the magnetic head was defective. It got very hot even without the watch attached. The unit was replaced under warranty at no charge to me.

  • by Canyoncat,

    Canyoncat Canyoncat May 19, 2015 1:07 PM in response to creeseas
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 19, 2015 1:07 PM in response to creeseas

    Thanks for the observations. My charging cable worked fine until I plugged it into a USB power outlet on an airplane. That's when it first started getting hot and quit working. I asked the technician at the Genius Bar if there were any restrictions on connecting the charger cable to any USB power and he stated to should work with any USB power outlet. However, until there is more history of use with the general public, I will remain conservative and plan to charge only through the originally supplied charging cube. Thanks for your help.

  • by Canyoncat,

    Canyoncat Canyoncat May 19, 2015 1:21 PM in response to szymonrules
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 19, 2015 1:21 PM in response to szymonrules

    Thanks. See my comment to 'creeseas'. I'm going to be safe and plan my daily charging around using the supplied power cube. The charger does get a little warm when charging from a low battery, but not hot enough to fry an egg.