Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

"12 watt" vs "5 watt" charger on iPhone 6 Plus

2IS said:
Modern lithium batteries are pretty good at handling a faster charge without damaging them. The only issue I can potentially see is if you're using a 12watt charger AND doing something intensive on the phone, it could result in quite a bit of heat. Which lithium batteries don't like too much.
Click to expand...

Apple has never made any indication that there is anything unsafe about using the 12w adapter while using an iPhone.
 
leesweet said:
A couple of things: I see what the measurements are, and I'll have to make my own. As others have said, that doesn't match up with what we've seen in real life!

Also, can someone point me to where these references are that the older iPhones only 'take' 5W? I'd like to see that, as I never have.

The fact that the iPad mini comes with the small charger just means that the charge times on the large iPad with the 5W charger would be unusable, as anyone who ever has tried that knows. It's a cost-saving measure, I expect.

More to come...
Click to expand...

sb22 said:
How is there even an arguement over this, have they naysayers tested it? My 5 always charged faster on an iPad 12w, a 5w was a downgrade everytime and took forever - especially so from zero battery to restart.
Click to expand...

Appl3FTW said:
Wrong, my 5s charged faster... And so does my 5, 4s etc.
Click to expand...

I don't understand why you guys are still claiming the older iPhones charge faster with a higher wattage adapter when there are multiple pieces of evidence posted to disprove that theory. (Look at the current output on the Macbook Pros and the picture of the Kill-A-Watt meter 2IS posted.)

Yes, it's perfectly fine to use an iPad adapter. No, it does not charge your non 2014 iPhone faster. Unless you come up with something that proves your point, stop spreading misinformation.
 
2IS said:
Not sure if this has been done yet, but I decided to dig up the Kill-A-Watt and take some measurements. Both chargers had a readout of 0.0 watts when plugged in with nothing but the cable attached to them. Both photos taken with an iPhone 6 Plus while being charged. See attached images.
Click to expand...

Is it safe to charge the iPhone with a desktop's USB port?
 
Reminisce32 said:
Is it safe to charge the iPhone with a desktop's USB port?
Click to expand...

Safe but if you're using a standard USB slot, it'll charge at half or less than half speed. Newer Apple computers can charge phones at normal speed (or in the case of the iPhone 6+, faster than with the included wall adapter).

I've been charging my iPad and iPhone simultaneously on my Macbook for over 2 years. The devices have all been fine. The Lightning cable and Magsafe cable haven't fared as well but I'm not sure if charging is the cause. Apple has always replaced the cables though.
 
Last edited:
cynics said:
Would you mind taking a picture of the wattage as the charge nears completion and when completely charged?
Click to expand...

Here you go. I took all the photos using my old iPhone 5 so powering the screen/camera wouldn't be a factor in power draw.

Battery @ 80%
wN3En7j.jpg


Battery @ 85%
JtVEaFn.jpg


Battery @ 90%
5uh0Z4a.jpg


Battery @ 95%
YDFTHJl.jpg


Battery @ 100%
Nrz5nfd.jpg


Battery @ 100% the next morning
TMZBygR.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: peter.sift
2IS said:
Here you go. I took all the photos using my old iPhone 5 so powering the screen/camera wouldn't be a factor in power draw.
Click to expand...

These pics are great, thank you. Looks like even in the low 9x% it can use more current than the 5W adapter can provide.
 
Guys, this doesn't appear to apply to the iPhone 6 (regular, not 6+). I'm charging right now from about 50% battery with a genuine Apple 12w charger plugged into my Seasonic Power Angel (similar to the Kill A Watt from the earlier pictures) and I don't see more than 6w draw when the screen of the phone is off.

This would kind of make sense as the battery in the 6 is a lot closer in size to the older phones than the 6+.
 
zhenya said:
Guys, this doesn't appear to apply to the iPhone 6 (regular, not 6+). I'm charging right now from about 50% battery with a genuine Apple 12w charger plugged into my Seasonic Power Angel (similar to the Kill A Watt from the earlier pictures) and I don't see more than 6w draw when the screen of the phone is off.

This would kind of make sense as the battery in the 6 is a lot closer in size to the older phones than the 6+.
Click to expand...

It applies to both.

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/ne...s-support-2.1a-charging-ship-with-1a-adapters
 
Azzin said:
It applies to both.

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/ne...s-support-2.1a-charging-ship-with-1a-adapters
Click to expand...

I'm fairly sure it doesn't as I'm testing it with the appropriate equipment right now.

That said, I think I've figured out where the discrepancy lies, as I wrote in the thread now on the main page: https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=19849228#post19849228

(in reference to charging with the 12w adapter on the iPhone 6)
I think what might be happening is that with the screen off, both charge at the same 6w maximum, but what the 10-12w chargers do is give you additional headroom to charge when the screen is on.

ie. the smaller charger has a maximum draw of ~6w total. If the screen is off, the entire 6w goes to the battery. However if the screen is on, it takes 2-4w to run the phone, leaving less power to go to the battery. The larger chargers will also limit to 6w when the screen is off, but can STILL give the battery 6w when the screen is on. This is where the illusion of faster charging on the 10-12w adapters comes from.

In a sense, both sides are right, although it appears that only the 6+ can actually put more than 6w into the battery.
Click to expand...
 
2IS said:
Not sure if this has been done yet, but I decided to dig up the Kill-A-Watt and take some measurements. Both chargers had a readout of 0.0 watts when plugged in with nothing but the cable attached to them. Both photos taken with an iPhone 6 Plus while being charged. See attached images.
Click to expand...

Are these values taken with the screen of the phone on or off while charging?

What I'm finding with the iPhone 6 is that it appears to take a maximum of 6w into the battery, but can use the extra headroom to power the device, using, in my experience so far, a maximum of 10w. I don't believe that extra power is going into the battery however.

It would not surprise me if it is with the much larger battery of the 6+ but I'd like to be thorough.
 
zhenya said:
Are these values taken with the screen of the phone on or off while charging?

What I'm finding with the iPhone 6 is that it appears to take a maximum of 6w into the battery, but can use the extra headroom to power the device, using, in my experience so far, a maximum of 10w. I don't believe that extra power is going into the battery however.

It would not surprise me if it is with the much larger battery of the 6+ but I'd like to be thorough.
Click to expand...

The first set of pics is with the screen on and I took the photo with the same phone that was being charged. The second set of photos was taken with a separate phone and the screen was off on my iPhone 6 Plus but the battery was already at 80%

Below is a pic of my iPhone 6 Plus charging at 36% battery capacity left, screen off.

x4pmZzA.jpg
 
I've charged my 5/5S with my 12 watt iPad adapter and the one that came with my phone and the 12 watt adapter definitely does NOT make it charge faster, and I don't need scientific evidence to see this.
 
2IS said:
The first set of pics is with the screen on and I took the photo with the same phone that was being charged. The second set of photos was taken with a separate phone and the screen was off on my iPhone 6 Plus but the battery was already at 80%

Below is a pic of my iPhone 6 Plus charging at 36% battery capacity left, screen off.

Image
Click to expand...

Ok, cool. So that confirms that the 6+ battery can charge at higher rate, and the 6 can now charge at its full 6w even when the phone is being used, which should make it charge faster under most conditions.
 
Inframan said:
it is NOT faster to charge your iPhone 6 with a iPad Charger.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hgfb1raouxc
Click to expand...

It starts charging slower when it gets to about 80%, possibly even earlier, so that's not really proven anything, other than that it does indeed charge at least somewhat faster. Charging is not done in a linear scale, so two different chargers during the same charge cycle are not comparable as they're used at different points in cycle.

Only a full charge from 0 to 100 on each charger will actually give any meaningful stats.

it should definitely be much faster from 0-50% than standard 5W charger.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back