Why is wireless charging considered a selling point?

calb · Feb 3, 2013

Vegastouch said:
These things are different than just a charging pad that costs $59 when my cable is free and would be in the same place everyday as the pad.

And the cable is included and will be where you want it. Wireless charging is an option, and I applaud Nokia and others who are pushing Qi adoption before Apple decide their own wireless charging solution is the solution. Wireless charging will come to the iPhone, and miraculously it will suddenly be universally praised as a useful feature.

We're at a point where battery technology isn't moving pace quickly enough; manufacturers are looking for ways to make battery life less of a concern. Wireless charging is one of those... and by providing it as an option, they are encouraging adoption which in turn ups the end-user benefit.

Come on, if Apple can tout AirPlay then Nokia can surely use wireless charging to market its products. FWIW I'm an iPhone/iPad/MBP owner.

TacticalDesire · Feb 3, 2013

I'm not sure what the big deal is either way. Its there for those that want it and for those that don't there's the traditional micro USB that can be found anywhere. I probably have about 50 of those things laying around and if I forget one on a trip or something they can be found at any gas station or corner store. I don't understand why wireless charging is something to get upset over. Besides, when apple includes it on their devices it will be called innovative and will be treated like the second coming of Christ.

Irishman · Feb 3, 2013

onthecouchagain said:
Please clarify. I'm happy to admit I'm wrong, but you'll have to help me understand.

What I read was, if wireless charging sometimes requires using a chord to charge, then it's not ready for use nor adoption.

Here is your quote:

Help me understand how that's different from, for example, MagSafe 2, which if one wanted to connect to the current Thunderbolt Display, would require the MagSafe 2 adapter, in effect, employing "old technology." This is only one example of many converters Apple sells in case people need to use "old technology" to accomplish something that the new port is replacing.

I don't see you speaking so vehemently about Apple pushing new technologies that may or may not be ready for full-time adoption. In fact, many (likely you, too) see it as Apple advancing technology. I would agree with this. I personally love Apple's Macs and own two different kinds.

Why is this same merit not applied to the competition when they do the same thing?

No, you still aren't understanding me.

How many phones can do wireless (induction) charging WITHOUT plugging in the mat?

Let me answer that for you - none!

It is not an adapter, it is a contained charging device that needs a phone designed to pair with it.

It is not an adapter.

Vegastouch · Feb 3, 2013

TacticalDesire said:
I'm not sure what the big deal is either way. Its there for those that want it and for those that don't there's the traditional micro USB that can be found anywhere. I probably have about 50 of those things laying around and if I forget one on a trip or something they can be found at any gas station or corner store. I don't understand why wireless charging is something to get upset over. Besides, when apple includes it on their devices it will be called innovative and will be treated like the second coming of Christ.

I dont think anyone is upset over it. I know im not. I just dont feel the need to spend $59 on a wireless pad. at this point. I only charge my phone at home next to my bed or in the car if needed. I dont have a desk job.

And your right, when the iPhone gets it, the iFans here will claim they are innovating....lol. And im sure their charger will cost a lot more.

onthecouchagain · Feb 3, 2013

Irishman said:
No, you still aren't understanding me.

How many phones can do wireless (induction) charging WITHOUT plugging in the mat?

Let me answer that for you - none!

It is not an adapter, it is a contained charging device that needs a phone designed to pair with it.

It is not an adapter.

Okay... This certainly proves no double standard.

Mr. Retrofire · Feb 3, 2013

chrf097 said:
Why is wireless charging considered a selling point?

Because it is a good way to increase the CO2 emissions. That is exactly what mother earth needs.

;-)

ReallyBigFeet · Feb 3, 2013

I didn't read this whole thread so pardon me if its already been mentioned.

Both Starbucks and Panera in the Boston area are running a pilot program where the charging mats are built into the top of a table surface. So you stop by, grab a brew, and just drop your phone onto the mat on the table surface and you can top-off your phone while you sip and surf. No need to carry a plug/cord around with you or look for one of those tables near an outlet (or that has one of those USB charging hub ports on it...seen those in airports myself).

I think, however, this only becomes valuable when one of the three different competing standards for wireless charging mats becomes THE standard. Right now, its a crap shoot like with anything else new in the market. And with my luck, I always tend to choose the wrong platform.

Tinmania · Feb 3, 2013

Irishman said:
How many phones can do wireless (induction) charging WITHOUT plugging in the mat?

Let me answer that for you - none!

Good lord.

In other news, AP is reporting that plants do in fact need water to survive. Who knew??

Michael

pacalis · Feb 3, 2013

Irishman said:
No, you still aren't understanding me.

How many phones can do wireless (induction) charging WITHOUT plugging in the mat?

Let me answer that for you - none!

It is not an adapter, it is a contained charging device that needs a phone designed to pair with it.

It is not an adapter.

You're ridiculously unclear. But my GS3 has been "adapted."

I bought a Qi receiver, which is like a 1 inch square, for $20.

I put it under the back panel (removable in the Gs3).

Closed the black panel. Phone is the same dimension.

And now I charge on a Qi mat.

There's nothing particularly "paired" about this. Qi is a huge industry standard. My GS3 has now been "adapted" to charge on Nokia, JBL, Energizer, motorola, TDK etc.. devices now

Sounds like an adapter.

Irishman · Feb 4, 2013

onthecouchagain said:
Okay... This certainly proves no double standard.

I don't believe that neither this thread, nor my participation in it, has anything whatsoever to do with a double standard.

Sorry, not taking your bait.

----------

Tinmania said:
Good lord.

In other news, AP is reporting that plants do in fact need water to survive. Who knew??

Michael

Thank you, Captain Obvious!

Now, back to reality we go...

----------

pacalis said:
You're ridiculously unclear. But my GS3 has been "adapted."

I bought a Qi receiver, which is like a 1 inch square, for $20.

I put it under the back panel (removable in the Gs3).

Closed the black panel. Phone is the same dimension.

And now I charge on a Qi mat.

There's nothing particularly "paired" about this. Qi is a huge industry standard. My GS3 has now been "adapted" to charge on Nokia, JBL, Energizer, motorola, TDK etc.. devices now

Sounds like an adapter.

In your case, it is an adapter. But for phones that work with the induction mat without one, it is not needed, and not an apt analogy.

onthecouchagain · Feb 4, 2013

Irishman said:
I don't believe that neither this thread, nor my participation in it, has anything whatsoever to do with a double standard.

Sorry, not taking your bait.

There is no bait. Just your own words, which I'm asking you to standby and clarify.

I'll ask once more to give you the opportunity to explain yourself...

How is implementing wireless charging, which may or may not sometimes need a chord to charge (aka "old technology") any different from Apple implementing thunderbolt connector, lightning connector, magsafe 2, exorcising the optical drive but still offering a plethora of converters and the superdrive (aka "old technology") for people who may or may not sometimes need to connect and charge the old way, or use CDs?

On one hand, you criticize that it's not ready for adoption. On the other, you are quiet.

Please explain (or show me that you criticize Apple just as equally for trying new technology that isn't ready for full-time adoption).

And here's your quote, again, for all to see:

Irishman said:
Which means that if we still have to point back to the "old technology" to perform normally expected tasks that people do every day, the new technology isn't ready to replace it.

Irishman · Feb 4, 2013

onthecouchagain said:
There is no bait. Just your own words, which I'm asking you to standby and clarify.

I'll ask once more to give you the opportunity to explain yourself...

How is implementing wireless charging, which may or may not sometimes need a chord to charge (aka "old technology") any different from Apple implementing thunderbolt connector, lightning connector, magsafe 2, exorcising the optical drive but still offering a plethora of converters and the superdrive (aka "old technology") for people who may or may not sometimes need to connect and charge the old way, or use CDs?

On one hand, you criticize that it's not ready for adoption. On the other, you are quiet.

Please explain (or show me that you criticize Apple just as equally for trying new technology that isn't ready for full-time adoption).

And here's your quote, again, for all to see:

What is the induction mat "adapting"?

onthecouchagain · Feb 4, 2013

Irishman said:
What is the induction mat "adapting"?

Nothing. The point you were trying to make, as I and others have understood, is that if new technology sometimes requires the use of old technology to accomplish the same task it's not ready for said new technology.

The difference is you don't have the same argument depending on the company.

It's telling when you keep dodging the question. But the day apple does wireless charging, I'm sure you'll come around.

jamojamo · Feb 4, 2013

onthecouchagain said:
Nothing. The point you were trying to make, as I and others have understood, is that if new technology sometimes requires the use of old technology to accomplish the same task it's not ready for said new technology.

The difference is you don't have the same argument depending on the company.

It's telling when you keep dodging the question. But the day apple does wireless charging, I'm sure you'll come around.

I bet they will they be raving about how life changing it is like the fans here do for their favorite Android feature.

Irishman · Feb 4, 2013

onthecouchagain said:
Nothing. The point you were trying to make, as I and others have understood, is that if new technology sometimes requires the use of old technology to accomplish the same task it's not ready for said new technology.

The difference is you don't have the same argument depending on the company.

It's telling when you keep dodging the question. But the day apple does wireless charging, I'm sure you'll come around.

The charger is a charger, not an adapter to make older devices work with a newer connector.

THAT is the clear difference that I can see. Sorry you cannot.

But it's not my problem.

----------

jamojamo said:
I bet they will they be raving about how life changing it is like the fans here do for their favorite Android feature.

Hey, if Apple implements wireless charging the way I suggested (putting a radio of some kind - I cited either BT or Wi-Fi before - into an existing wall wart, plugging that into the wall and letting your phone or tablet within range of either protocol use it without the need for a mat), I will rave about it, because that will be revolutionary.

If they just do what the Android phones are doing now? Meh.

And please, quote me on that!

onthecouchagain · Feb 4, 2013

Irishman said:
The charger is a charger, not an adapter to make older devices work with a newer connector.

THAT is the clear difference that I can see. Sorry you cannot.

But it's not my problem.

In your own words, which you're now running away from and trying to split hairs, the need to employ old technology to accomplish what the new technology is supposed to do means it's not ready to be fully adopted.

But if you want to parse your own words a new way now, I'm game:

What of the SuperDrive then? Apple's Airs and Retina laptops no longer feature optical drives. Apple wants you to download software, download movies, etc. Yet, they still offer the SuperDrive for those who want to use the "old technology" -- this isn't an adapter to make downloads work.

Please call Apple out on this. EDIT: Or recognize that wireless charging is pushing new technology forward, whether you're interested in it or not, just like I can recognize Apple for pushing the future of downloads instead of physical media, whether I'm interested in that method or not.

I'll leave it at that. Good luck sorting out your own intellectual honesty.

pacalis · Feb 4, 2013

Irishman said:
Hey, if Apple implements wireless charging the way I suggested (putting a radio of some kind - I cited either BT or Wi-Fi before - into an existing wall wart, plugging that into the wall and letting your phone or tablet within range of either protocol use it without the need for a mat), I will rave about it, because that will be revolutionary.

If they just do what the Android phones are doing now? Meh.

And please, quote me on that!

Dude, this is weird.

Basically you're arguing that it's not helpful to put your phone down on a mat. Right?

But that until you can walk around with it, presumably charging in your pants, you're going to prefer a cord.

Tinmania · Feb 4, 2013

pacalis said:
Dude, this is weird.

Basically you're arguing that it's not helpful to put your phone down on a mat. Right?

But that until you can walk around with it, presumably charging in your pants, you're going to prefer a cord.

No, he just assumes that Apple is going to be able to break the laws of physics. But if God... I mean if "Apple" deems that it can't be done the way God intended... err, Apple intended then no one else should do it either.

If Apple made the Nissan Leaf it would magically charge out of thin air as you drove it (in the dark).

Michael

calb · Feb 4, 2013

Irishman said:
The charger is a charger, not an adapter to make older devices work with a newer connector.

THAT is the clear difference that I can see. Sorry you cannot.

But it's not my problem.

----------

Hey, if Apple implements wireless charging the way I suggested (putting a radio of some kind - I cited either BT or Wi-Fi before - into an existing wall wart, plugging that into the wall and letting your phone or tablet within range of either protocol use it without the need for a mat), I will rave about it, because that will be revolutionary.

If they just do what the Android phones are doing now? Meh.

And please, quote me on that!

But you don't have to buy a wireless charging pad! If you're lucky you may get one bundled with the phone, or can pick one up at a later date for a low price. By your logic, Apple shouldn't be marketing AirPlay unless they plan to give away an Apple TV with every purchase.

Nokia have an agreement with McDonalds (in the UK/Europe) to roll out wireless charging at their tables. That's clean, safe and convenient - doing that with a wired connection is problematic and simply isn't elegant. Qi has huge convenience potential, but it needs manufacturers, services and consumers to adopt it if there is any chance of the potential being fulfilled. Nokia are trying to push that before Apple adopt a different solution. Fair play.

Wireless charging is a great feature and you're still to put forward any substantive argument as to why it's not.

pacalis · Feb 4, 2013

calb said:
Nokia have an agreement with McDonalds (in the UK/Europe) to roll out wireless charging at their tables. That's clean, safe and convenient - doing that with a wired connection is problematic and simply isn't elegant. Qi has huge convenience potential, but it needs manufacturers, services and consumers to adopt it if there is any chance of the potential being fulfilled. Nokia are trying to push that before Apple adopt a different solution. Fair play.

Wireless charging is a great feature and you're still to put forward any substantive argument as to why it's not.

more or less every manufacturer but Apple has joined the WPC which does the Qi standard. And it's being adopted by other co's like Starbucks, and Virgin Atlantic.

It's really a pretty big leap forward when you consider that we haven't had a new charging standard since the wall socket. Of course, Apple won't contribute early. It will wait until it's all figured out, assemble it on the cheap and call it magic.

daveathall · Feb 4, 2013

Apple do not always release features that are fully complete or the finished article, wasn't Siri released as a beta? Isn't it still in beta? Hasn't the iPhone evolved from its beginnings? So this talk of Apple wouldn't release it until it is fully developed is just rubbish.

I look at induction charging using a mat with a removable mini USB cable to enable charging at another place, as the first step in the journey to being able to walk in any room and have your battery charge without any user input. From small acorns............

onthecouchagain · Feb 4, 2013

daveathall said:
Apple do not always release features that are fully complete or the finished article, wasn't Siri released as a beta? Isn't it still in beta? Hasn't the iPhone evolved from its beginnings. So this talk of Apple wouldn't release it until it is fully developed is just rubbish.

Don't forget Maps. I would hardly call that finished.

Siri, Maps, and iOS of late in general has gotten Forestall fired by Tim Cook. I mean, that's as much of an admission from Apple as you're going to get that iOS is in need of new direction, record-breaking sales or not.

daveathall said:
I look at induction charging using a mat with a removable mini USB cable to enable charging at another place, as the first step in the journey to being able to walk in any room and have your battery charge. From small acorns............

Exactly my point earlier. If Apple won't do it, someone's got to lead the way.

goofy1958 · Feb 4, 2013

Don't most of the mat chargers require that you place some sort of case or dongle on the phone? If not, how do you charge an iPhone 5 on a mat, since the inductive charging isn't built-in?

If it does require a case, then it becomes a pain for me, because I already have a case on my phone, and to have to take it off, and place a new one on, then change again when charged, is kinda silly. I just keep a plug ready all the time when I charge my phone (usually only at night, since a full charge lasts all day for me). Easy to just plug in the lightning connector.

daveathall · Feb 4, 2013

goofy1958 said:
Don't most of the mat chargers require that you place some sort of case or dongle on the phone? If not, how do you charge an iPhone 5 on a mat, since the inductive charging isn't built-in?

If it does require a case, then it becomes a pain for me, because I already have a case on my phone, and to have to take it off, and place a new one on, then change again when charged, is kinda silly. I just keep a plug ready all the time when I charge my phone (usually only at night, since a full charge lasts all day for me). Easy to just plug in the lightning connector.

Some phones don't need a case and have the charging bit built in, Nexus 4 for example. No iPhone does.

pacalis · Feb 4, 2013

daveathall said:
Apple do not always release features that are fully complete or the finished article, wasn't Siri released as a beta? Isn't it still in beta? Hasn't the iPhone evolved from its beginnings? So this talk of Apple wouldn't release it until it is fully developed is just rubbish.

No, it's not a physical law. But it's not rubbish for many successful standards where they have arrived late, or not at all, like NFC, LTE, BlueRay, USB 3, SD, micro-USB to list a few.

Why is wireless charging considered a selling point?

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