Finally moving on from my battered iPhone 12 mini. The battery life has been a nightmare lately—literally dying by 2 PM—and the camera struggles so much in low light that my evening photos are just a blurry mess. I’m grabbing the 17e because I really need that battery boost and the better sensor, but I’m worried about the charging situation.

I’ve been digging through some tech blogs, and I read that the generic Qi2 pucks are fine, but then I saw a few threads on Reddit claiming they overheat the 17e specifically due to the new internal thermal management. It’s super confusing because some reviewers swear by the Apple MagSafe charger, while others say third-party brands like Anker offer the same magnet strength for half the price.

My budget is kinda flexible, but I don't want to overpay if I don't have to. I need something that won't drop the connection while it's sitting on my nightstand (I toss and turn a lot lol).

Oh, and I need to make sure the cable itself is actually durable—my current one frayed within three months. So, is it actually worth shelling out for the official Apple magnetic charger, or has anyone found a third-party one that doesn't get weirdly hot?