Article Image

Watch someone use MagSafe to save their iPhone from a floorboard disaster

An iPhone slipping through the cracks of a floorboard can be anyone's worst nightmare. But if you have a MagSafe charger, all hope may not be lost.

Dropping an iPhone through the cracks of the floor sounds like a nightmare for anybody who owns one. David Cogen, founder of TheUnlockr.com, lived this particular nightmare when he dropped his iPhone 14 Plus and it slipped beneath the floorboards during a night out at a bar. Luckily, MagSafe came to the rescue.

Cogen shared a video on Twitter on Thursday showing the exact moment he dropped his iPhone 14 Plus through the floorboard at a local bar the night before — and everyone who attempted to help him fish it out from underneath, including the bar manager, using various tools to no avail. The next day, he returned to the bar, slipped a MagSafe Duo charger through the crack of the floorboard, and successfully fished his phone back to the surface and his hand.

My brand new @apple iPhone 14 Plus fell through the floorboards of a bar 🤦‍♂️⁠
⁠
Huge thanks to @dunnadidit for filming the endeavor and @ryan_kao for trying so hard to help me 🙏 pic.twitter.com/5QlkOov3gD

— David Cogen (@theunlockr) November 3, 2022

For the uninitiated, MagSafe was initially created as a magnetic charger for MacBooks that would slip out of the charging port instead of dragging the device down to the ground if someone accidentally trips over it. Today, Apple uses MagSafe as a ring of magnets embedded into the iPhone to hold MagSafe accessories — like the aforementioned MagSafe Duo charger, phone cases, and even card holders. Apple introduced MagSafe with the iPhone 12 series, continued it with the iPhone 13, and brought it back once more with the iPhone 14 family.

MagSafe chargers are designed to allow iPhone users to charge their phones wirelessly without the need to plug a Lightning cable into the charging port. Now, after Cogen’s dilemma, we know that they also serve as magnetic fishing hooks to help retrieve iPhones that have fallen between a rock and a hard place. Or, in his case, under the floorboard of a bar.

Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.

Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.

Samsung’s scandal over its Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, has returned with a bill attached. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has tentatively fined the company 20.1 billion won, or about $15.1 million, over gaming claims made for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, and Tab S8.

The regulator says Samsung promoted the devices as gaming powerhouses without disclosing that GOS placed preset CPU and GPU limits on certain demanding games. Samsung disputes that conclusion, calling GOS a legitimate way to manage heat.

Apple's next cheaper iPhone could get a brand-new processor while keeping its most stubborn display compromise. Digital Chat Station tips the iPhone 18e for a 2027 release with a 2nm A20 chip and a 6.12-inch OLED screen still limited to 60Hz.

The rumored camera setup includes a single 48MP rear camera and a possible 24MP selfie camera. There's new hardware to consider, but buyers hoping Apple would extend that upgrade generosity to smoother scrolling could be disappointed.