Technologies

I Take This Portable Charger Everywhere I Travel and It’s 33% Off Right Now

The handy Anker 622 MagGo snaps right onto the back of my iPhone, and I take it basically everywhere I go. Prices on all colors are discounted to as low as $32 on Amazon.

I take my phone with me wherever I go, and I’m not afraid to admit that I’ve come to rely on it for just about every aspect of my life — from getting news, weather and navigation help to staying in close contact with friends, family and co-workers. That means, like many people, I live in constant fear that my iPhone’s battery will die on me right when I need it most. That is, I did until I found the Anker 622 MagGo, which CNET ranked as the best magnetic power bank with an integrated stand, and which I now take with me everywhere I go.

In my opinion, this charger is a worthwhile buy even at its full retail price of $48. But right now you can get every color for a solid discount of about 33% off. The cheapest option is dark gray, which is on sale for $32, while all other colors — lavender, white, mint green and pale blue — are all available for $34.

Here’s why I’ve stuck with this little charger for so long

Have you seen people walk around with a loop of cable hanging from their pocket to their phone? I’ve been there and hooked that loop on too many chairs and table corners. Never again. The ring of magnets in the Anker 622 MagGo aligns with the MagSafe magnets in every iPhone since the iPhone 12, latching securely and charging without wires. (The notable exception is the iPhone 16E, which does not offer MagSafe but does charge wirelessly using Qi technology. The Anker 622 MagGo will charge the iPhone 16E but won’t latch to it magnetically.)

It’s also compact — a little backpack feeding power to the phone while you’re holding it or have it stashed in a pocket, even a jeans pocket if your fit isn’t too tight.

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Those features alone would have convinced me but the Anker 622 also includes a fold-out back flap that props up my iPhone and can also hold the phone in its wide orientation for StandBy mode. With a power adapter such as the Anker Nano Pro (not included) and a charging cable, I’ve taught long classes with the phone angled to help me keep track of the time without checking my watch.

Essential Anker 622 MagGo specs

Here’s what you need to know.

Battery capacity: 5,000 milliamp hours
Voltage: 1.55 volts
Output: 7.5-watt Magnetic (compatible with MagSafe-equipped devices, iPhone 12 and later) or 20-watt USB-C port. Can charge only one device at a time.
Input: The same single USB-C is also how you recharge the device.
Size: 4.13-inch by 2.61 inches by 0.5 inch
Weight: 5 ounces
Included: Magnetic battery, 60cm (23.6 inches) USB-C to USB-C cable
Warranty: 24 months

MagSafe-compatible charging

I’ve owned several battery chargers and each one has some sort of compromise. They’re bulky. They require a cable. They charge wirelessly but don’t include a magnet to keep the phone in place so it’s hard to maintain that connection. There’s always something.

The Anker 622 is half an inch thick and snaps onto the back of my iPhone using the MagSafe-aligned magnets. I don’t have to turn it on to start charging — power flows as soon as the connection is made.

Now, this isn’t the highest-capacity (5,000 mAh) or fastest portable charger. That’s fine. What I usually need is a way to eke out a few more hours of battery life on my iPhone. I can typically get a full top-off of my iPhone 15 Pro.

Making a stand

The other appealing feature of the Anker 622 MagGo for me is its built-in stand. Honestly, it doesn’t look like it should work well: It’s a fabric-covered set of plastic pieces that lie flush against the case, folds in two places and attaches to the back of the unit with a magnetic strip when extended. Yet I’ve had no problems with the stability of my iPhone 15 Pro or even the larger iPhone 15 Pro Max size.

This also lets me use standby mode by turning the iPhone to landscape orientation (the magnets are strong enough to hold the phone in place) when it’s on a table or desk.

Smart port placement matters

The charger gets its juice from a single USB-C port, which is positioned on the edge of the case, not the bottom. That means you can replenish it while the stand is open — many chargers’ ports are stuck on the bottom.

That USB-C port also acts as a charger for other devices when you plug in a cable, such as when your Apple Watch needs a boost.

How the Anker 622 MagGo compares to similar power banks

Before getting the Anker 622 MagGo, I carried an Anker PowerCore III 10K Wireless, which doubles the battery capacity, includes a USB-A port and charges wirelessly but without magnets to hold the phone in place. That meant if I didn’t use a cable, the phone and charger needed to be stable and level; too often I’d find the iPhone slid off its wireless perch and not charged. It’s also larger and heavier. I still use it, but it’s the power bank that goes into my carry-on suitcase as a backup charger.

Since I’ve owned this Anker 622 MagGo, the company has released a few updated models. The $60 Anker 633 packs 10,000 mAh into a thicker brick, includes a USB-A port in addition to USB-C and has a metal kickstand for resting the phone upright.

You can also consider getting the chunkier Anker MagGo Power Bank that delivers 10,000 mAh and follows the same idea of compact magnetic charging and a convenient kickstand. Its main appeals are faster 15-watt magnetic charging and Qi2 compatibility, plus a small display on the side that reports the battery capacity and an estimate of the remaining battery in hours.

(Note that some Anker power banks were part of a recent recall. Be sure to claim your free replacement or gift card if you own one of the affected devices sold between 2016 and 2022.)

For more smart buys, check out this amazing multitool and a portable TV that can go anywhere.

Impulse Buys Under $25 on Amazon That Make Surprisingly Great Gifts

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, July 20

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for July 20.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

I’ll admit, I was thinking of a different kind of chip for 5-Down, and it threw me for a loop. I figured it out thanks to my deep knowledge of nacho toppings for 7-Across. Need a hand with today’s Mini Crossword? Keep reading. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: The heart of summer?
Answer: EMS

4A clue: Emotional request
Answer: PLEA

5A clue: Word before aching or dancing
Answer: BELLY

6A clue: Many fans of Premier League clubs
Answer: BRITS

7A clue: Nacho topping that rhymes with 3-Down
Answer: QUESO

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Leading role on «The Last of Us»
Answer: ELLIE

2D clue: Gooey diner sandwiches
Answer: MELTS

3D clue: Authoritative approval
Answer: SAYSO

4D clue: Country on one side of Lake Titicaca
Answer: PERU

5D clue: Orange-and-brown chip flavor, for short
Answer: BBQ

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for July 20, #300

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for July 20, No. 300

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Football fans should cruise through today’s Connections: Sports Edition. The purple category isn’t too challenging. I figured that one out first for a change. Check out our hints and the answers for today’s game.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: All about the numbers.

Green group hint: Catch and run.

Blue group hint: Hello, Hollywood.

Purple group hint: In the hole.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Statistic.

Green group: NFL wide receivers.

Blue group: Football movies, with «The.»

Purple group: What «ace» could mean.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is statistic. The four answers are datum, figure, number and stat.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is NFL wide receivers. The four answers are Chase, Lamb, Nabers and Waddle.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is football movies, with «The.» The four answers are Express, Longest Yard, Replacements and Waterboy.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is what «ace» could mean. The four answers are pitcher, playing card, tennis serve and WNBA player.

Technologies

Warframe’s The Old Peace Expansion Revealed: A Perilous Trip to Tau Unfolds Soon

The Tenno are traveling the cosmos to end up in a different star system — and getting their hands on some sweet new gear along the way.

Warframe’s last few updates have been a narrative tour de force through time and space, weaving together disparate threads from the far-flung past of the year 1999 and the fairytale void-dimension of Duviri.

Core to these expansions is the conflict with the Eldritch threat known only as the Indifference. As it comes closer to piercing the veil of our reality and escaping the void, it’s up to the Tenno to navigate lost memories — rediscovering forgotten allies, a peace that was doomed to fail and a path to a star system beyond our own.

Warframe’s The Old Peace expansion gives us our first real look at Tau, introduces a frame that follows closely on Oraxia’s heels and expands players’ arsenals with a familiar Prime Warframe and new Operator abilities.

At this year’s TennoCon convention, studio Digital Extremes outlined what’s coming in the next year of Warframe, including its next expansion landing in the coming months and the big plans for next year.

Here’s everything you need to know about the next chapter of Warframe — as we once more delve into the past to prepare for future battles.

Read more: How Warframe Balances Bleakness With Quirky Foes to Stay True to Its Universe

What is Tau? Traveling to Warframe’s promised land

For Warframe lore junkies, the upcoming opportunity to actually see the long-teased Tau for the first time is a mind-boggling prospect. This is the star system that the Orokin Empire created the Sentients to colonize. It’s the very place that the Zariman Ten Zero was en route to before its accident created the Tenno, the void-powered player characters.

The turbulent rise and fall of the current major factions can be attributed to a greedy superpower wanting to get its paws on the resources in this star system, making it arguably one of the most important set pieces in the Warframe universe. And now we’re getting our eyes on it for the first time in the game’s 10-year history.

Note that players won’t actually get to properly explore Tau until 2026 — most of the system’s mysteries will remain intact for now, with players grappling with the past as they run and gun across a single planetary moon.

In the lead-up to Tau, The Old Peace will be the next expansion — another time-bending adventure, as the Tenno use funky void powers (and sensory deprivation tanks) to explore repressed memories.

Though the new narrative doesn’t necessarily retcon anything we know about the old war between the Orokin and the Sentients, it does call into question how much we truly know about that time period. The Tenno, Orokin and Sentients all made it to Tau and at one point established a tenuous peace — you’ll even find out about a forgotten childhood best friend, a Sentient named Adis.

The Old Peace will surely be a tragic tale, because we know this story ends in bloodshed. Even if the Tenno enforce the peace by cutting down Orokin Dax warriors who are currently violating the agreement, war will inevitably break out and history will run its course. Although we won’t be able to make a difference on Tau’s moon of Perita, there are hidden truths to uncover — ones that will help us prepare for the approaching war with the Indifference.

The Devil’s Triad: An Orokin story that introduces visually stunning zealots

The Old Peace introduces three characters who might as well be the physical embodiment of Catholic guilt. I love decking my Warframes out to look a bit medieval, so this gothic squad is right up my alley.

The Devil’s Triad is a group of Orokin enforcers — religious zealots and confessors — who seem to be involved in some way with Albrecht Entrati, the scientist who made first contact with the Indifference, created the Warframes and hid in the 1999 time loop.

Father Lyon Allard and Marie Leroux are new protoframe variants of Harrow and Wisp, expanding on the concept introduced with the Drifter’s Hex allies. Their colleague has been fully consumed by the Infestation’s steelskin, becoming the next Warframe: The devil Uriel.

These characters match the darker vibe of The Old Peace — their striking visuals call to mind the religious zealotry of the Warhammer’s Inquisitors, and they fit right in with Harrow’s original lore as Rell’s Warframe protector in the Red Veil faction.

Caliban Prime, focus system upgrades and more

A mental traipse through Tau reveals old Tenno powers born anew. A temporary alliance with the Sentients created hybrid technologies lost to time — but now we’ll have the chance to bring them back to the present.

The next Warframe to get the prime treatment will be Caliban — which slots perfectly into the lore for the upcoming expansion. Prime Warframes are more powerful versions of the biomechanical suits that were created in the heyday of the Orokin Empire, and Caliban is the amalgamation of the Infestation and Sentient technology.

It only makes sense that Caliban Prime is the product of the titular old peace, and so the recently reworked ally-summoning frame will get its chance to shine in your arsenal very soon.

The other big change to Warframe’s power scaling won’t come in the form of traditional weaponry. The Tenno’s void powers are getting upgrades, as players who are fully invested in the five core focus schools (Operator skill trees) will soon be able to wield powerful ultimate abilities. Though there aren’t many details yet about what the Tauron focus expansion will look like in practice, developer Digital Extremes has promised to elaborate on the feature in future Devstreams.

Other big TennoCon announcements that will shape the way you interact with your Warframes and weaponry throughout the rest of the year include a long-awaited Oberon Warframe rework, a new mod-related story quest that teaches new players how to properly ramp up their power, and special skins for Valkyr and Lavos.

The Old Peace expansion will launch later in 2025, with continual content updates slated to come out in the following months. Tau is set to become the key story driver for Warframe next year, so this will become an important expansion to familiarize yourself with postrelease.