iPhone 12’s MagSafe Could Interfere With Pacemakers

Our phones contain magnets, but with the iPhone 12 series, Apple has introduced more magnets thanks to the (re)introduction of MagSafe. Some have wondered that with these additional magnets, could it interfere with other devices, like credit cards, access cards, as well as medical devices like pacemakers.

Apple had previously said that MagSafe “are not expected to pose a greater risk of magnetic interference to medical devices than prior iPhone models”, according to a support document, but it turns out that might not necessarily be 100% true. This is according to a study published by Heart Rhythm Journal where they found it might cause some interference with pacemakers.

The study tested MagSafe against a pacemaker made by Medtronic and found that when it was placed near the medical device, it actually deactivated the pacemaker. That being said, before you get too alarmed, it’s not exactly conclusive evidence, but it does suggest that maybe more studies need to be conducted to find out for sure, but in the meantime, the deactivation does suggest that maybe the addition of the magnets in the iPhone 12 for MagSafe support could potentially present some risks for those with such medical devices.

Also, to be fair, as 9to5Mac points out, it’s not necessarily just the iPhone 12 as any device that contains strong magnets could also cause similar issues. However, given that we use our phones daily and have them so close us all the time, it might be worth investigating.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Apple, Cellphones, Medical
Tags: Health, iPhone, iphone 12, MagSafe