Make charging your Oculus Quest easy with these magnetic chargers - Android

Gamers who play their Oculus Quest daily undoubtedly hate getting interrupted by a dying battery and should absolutely invest in one of the best Oculus Quest magnetic chargers. These VR headsets may provide a completely untethered experience, but as we noted in our Oculus Quest 2 review, it has meager battery life. Meaning, after two to three hours, you'll have to sit carefully next to the power adapter to keep playing. With a USB-C magnetic charger or adapter, though, you'll have peace of mind knowing your headset won't be yanked to the ground if you accidentally pull on the cable. To work with a Quest or Quest 2, though, it must support fast data transfer speeds as well as quick charging, making the compatible picks below your best starting point. That's why our top pick is the Knaive USB-C magnetic adapter. It checks all the boxes.

Best Overall: Knaive USB C Magnetic Adapter

This magnetic adapter supports 20V/5A Quick Charge, data transfers up to 10Gbps and works with the USB-C cables you already own, including the USB-C cable that ships with the Oculus Quest (although you'll want to get a longer one if you want to play and charge at the same time). The connector also rests at a 90-degree angle, which allows you to point a cable directly up or down, depending on how you're charging the device.

Unlike some of its competitors, this adapter has a reversible design, meaning you don't have to worry about which way you connect your cable to the device. It also has an LED indicator to help you make sure your Oculus Quest is charging.

Pros:

• Supports quick charging
• Supports data transfer up to 10Gbps
• Works with existing cables

Cons:

• Requires a separate cable
• Is not circular, so it only supports two angles

Best Overall

Knaive USB Type C Magnetic Adapter

• $21 at Amazon

Power and data

This reversible adapter supports quick charging and works with the USB-C cables you already have.

Best Budget: Aralana 540° Rotation 3.0A Charging 10ft Magnetic USB Cable

These cables have a magnetic attachment on the end that can work with USB-C, Micro-USB, and even Lightning ports thanks to their interchangeable heads. As a result, they can work with the Oculus Quest or Quest 2 using USB-C, older devices with Micro-USB, and Apple devices with Lightning ports.

Their circular head design means that you can charge your Oculus Quest at any angle you'd like, and the charging head swivels to help it contort with you in VR. They also come at a bargain since a two-pack of cables that are over ten feet long is cheaper than some cables on their own. These longer cables are great for plugging your Oculus Quest directly into the wall but are too long to be used with battery packs kept on the headset or in your pocket.

Pros:

• Circular design means you can charge at any angle
• Works with USB-C, Micro-USB, and Lightning
• Long enough to move around while charging
• Two-pack at an affordable price

Cons:

• Excess wire when used with battery packs

Best Budget

Aralana 540° Rotation 3.0A Charging 10ft Magnetic USB Cable

• $20 at Amazon

Long and affordable

These cables come with magnetic attachments that allow you to charge your Oculus Quest at any angle and still have room to play.

Best for Battery Packs: NetDot Gen10 Micro USB and USB-C Nylon Braided Magnetic Fast Charging Cable

Many Oculus Quest 2 users want to extend their playing time with external battery packs. These can be mounted to the back of your headset so you can continue to play while you charge, but also help counterbalance the front-heavy headset. This magnetic cable is only a foot long, so it won't have a lot of excess wiring in the way while it's plugged in. It supports charging up to 9V/2A and will easily detach if bumped while playing.

If you use a battery pack, you can move around freely while still charging your device. You'll still have a wire plugged into your headset, but mounting a battery pack to your headset means you can freely walk around. It's more convenient and portable than plugging your headset directly into a wall outlet, which tethers you to the wall. This cable is only a foot long, which means it can plug into the side of your headset and attach to a battery pack mounted on the back of your device.

Pros:

• All USB ports are USB 3.0
• Supports up to 5Gbps speeds
• Cable allows device to fit various setups
• Wire is just long enough

Cons:

• Only supports data up to 480Mbps
• Limited to specific angles
• Can detach easily

Best for Battery Packs

NetDot Gen10 Micro USB and USB-C Nylon Braided Magnetic Fast Charging Cable

• $14 at Amazon

Out of the way

This cable is short enough that there won't be wires in the way if you wear your Oculus Quest while charging it.

Best Circular Design: Kyerivs Magnetic USB Charging Cable

This braided cable features a circular design that gives you more flexibility because it can charge at any angle. It also supports fast charging up to 5V/2.4A and has an LED indicator to let you know that it's charging your device. At 3.3 feet, this cable is the right length to use with a battery pack that you keep in your pocket or attached to your waist.

If you attach this cable to your headset and use it with a battery pack on your waist or in your pocket, you'll be less constricted. The 360-degree design of this cable means that the cable doesn't have to point directly up, down, back, or forward. Instead, it can comfortably slide into the perfect angle for you.

Pros:

• Charge your device at any angle with circular design
• Supports fast charging
• Long enough to work with a battery pack on your hip

Cons:

• Too long to use with a battery pack without leaving extra wiring

Best Circular Design

Kyerivs Magnetic USB Charging Cable

• $9 at Amazon

Supporting all angles

This magnetic cable has a circular head that supports 360 degrees of movement. It also supports fast charging.

Best for Docking: Anker Charging Dock for Oculus Quest 2

The Anker Charging Dock for Oculus Quest 2 certainly fits the bill of a magnetic charger since both controllers and the Oculus Quest 2 headset dock to charge magnetically. Still, it's also quite a bit different from other options on this list. First off, it's considerably pricier than a simple cable, but that's because it's a far more sophisticated piece of electronics, featuring overcharge, overcurrent, and overload protection for your headset and controllers while charging.

Since it can sense when your controller and headset batteries are full, it can help prolong the battery life by shutting off charging when the batteries are full. The magnetic connector fits perfectly in your Quest 2's USB Type-C port for easy magnetic docking. The dock includes special rechargeable batteries for each controller, complete with a new battery door with POGO pins on it, enabling simple drop-and-go charging. You can't use this solution while playing, but it brings the ease of magnetic charging to the safety of a dock.

Pros:

• Easy dock-and-go charging
• Replaces controller batteries with rechargeable ones
• Overcharge, overcurrent, and overload protection

Cons:

• Not meant to be used while playing
• Expensive

Best for Docking

Anker Charging Dock for Oculus Quest 2

• $87 at Amazon

Get it all charged

Anker's Charging Dock keeps headsets and controllers charged and safe, with easy magnetic docking to ensure everything's in place.

Bottom line

Armed with one of the best Oculus Quest magnetic chargers, Quest and Quest 2 power users can worry less about keeping their headset fully charged at all times. Armed with a long, compatible USB-C power cord and a Knaive USB C Magnetic Adapter, you can at the very least take advantage of standing VR experiences without worrying about yanking the cord out, damaging something. Roomscale experiences might be trickier, but you could easily combine a USB-C cord, battery pack strapped to your headset, and Knaive adapter to stay fully mobile.

While we appreciate the Knaive USB Type C adapter for its fast data speed transfers and quick charge support, we should note some caveats with any magnetic charging Quest solution. For one, any magnetic adapter remains plugged inside of the Quest's charging port, so if you plan on taking it to play at a friend's house, you'll have to remove the adapter to plug in a regular USB-C charger. If you just want an easy dock-and-go experience, the Anker Charging Dock for Quest 2 makes it simple to dock your headset and controllers after each play session to ensure you have a full battery every time you begin playing.

The second, more important caveat is that you'll need to be careful using a magnetic cable with Oculus Link. Our picks support fast data transfer and should be fully capable of handling PCVR. But the very last thing you want is for your cable to become disconnected while playing an Oculus Link title. You'll need to stay very still while playing, or else ditch the adapter and rely on the standard Link cable if you plan to move around at all.

That aside, we still suggest getting your hands on a Quest magnetic charger, which can be a game-changer for long Quest gaming sessions. Then, you should check out some of our other favorite Quest 2 accessories.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

Sean Endicott is an app enthusiast even though he's used Windows Phone for years. He's on an eternal quest to convert every element of his home into something he can control from his phone.

Nick Sutrich Nick started with DOS and NES and uses those fond memories of floppy disks and cartridges to fuel his opinions on modern tech. Whether it's VR, smart home gadgets, or something else that beeps and boops, he's been writing about it since 2011. Find him on Twitter at @Gwanatu.