All Three New 2017 iPhones to Feature Wireless Charging

[elmaco]

What I want to see is true wireless charging, not that you have to put in on some pad, like Samsung. Ultimately, it should be able to charge in your pocket when you walk into the room, but I would be OK with putting it on a bedside table or a desktop and it charges within 50 cm.

It probably needs lot of research, but Apple has a ridiculous amount of money and if they would have invested, say a billion five years ago, they might have it now.

According to this blog, it looks like Apple is working on pad-charging.
http://seekingalpha.com/author/copperfield-research/instablogs

 

[dampfnudel]

"The new 3D Touch module could be up to $5 more expensive for Apple to procure per phone. While that is a minimal increase, it lends further credence to a report claiming the high-end iPhone 8 could cost upwards of $1,000 in the United States due to a significant redesign and the use of premium parts."

Someone tells Tim that and he replies no problem, add a zero to the $5 and that will be part of the additional $200 we'll charge for our customers who want our beautiful new iPhone 8/Pro (and not the three-year-old design iPhone 7s). I hope his successor decides to "think different".
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While I love all my Apple products that I own and have ever owned, it feels like they're usually tardy to the party. Granted they could have done wireless charging awhile ago, but it would be interesting to see "the Apple way" of its implementation; take what others do and make it better. Or at least try to convince us, LOL.

Apple seems to be trying harder to convince us than years ago when their products truly spoke for themselves.
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Realize that this is only speculation, but a $1,000 "premium" iPhone? So what happens when Apple uses OLED screens and wireless charging in the "premium" iPad Pro lineup, the cost of the wifi/cellular version jumps to $2,000? Getting out of hand.

I would say don't give Apple any ideas, but they're probably ahead of us both when it comes to future pricing schemes to make themselves and their shareholders smile from ear to ear.

 

[aces99]

Went right by you, didn't it?

Apparently.

 

[nutriousmitten]

Wireless charging is convenient in certain cases, and will evolve in the future to be a standard thing in a decade or so that we wonder what we did before, but rapid/quick charging technology is still much more useful day to day. Have it in my Note 5 and it really is handy.

 

[SirRahikkala]

First I was like "yeah but wireless charging is so slow" but then I realized that the iPhone does not even have any Quickcharge technologies so this might be good thing.

 

[dilbert99]

nah, the analysts have got it wrong... its actually a graphene layer top and bottom of the phone. Apple are using this to make the thinnest phone ever with an unbreakable screen. They are even using it in their batteries that will charge in 5 seconds.

 

[subjonas]

I don't want to 'have to' plop it on a pad.
I want to be able to use it any way I want while it charges.

Wait, how will it charge while I've picked it up?

I disagree. Requiring a pad to inductively charge would not be a meaningful improvement. For someone that travels a lot it would take up more space in your bag combined with the extra time to charge would not outweigh the portability and speed benefits of a connection.

No, you are wrong.

Firstly, a "charging pad" requires a flat surface to be on. Meaning tables, desks, nightstands, etc. Standalone lightning cables do not.

A "charging pad" would also require the iPhone to be lying on it at all times. Personally, I prefer to be able to charge my iPhone and use it at the same time. Next to my bed for example, I have a long lightning cable that I use to charge the phone while using it. With a charging pad, this would no longer be possible.

So this "wireless charging" doesn't grant you any freedom of movement at all. In fact, it restricts it.

Lastly, I have several lightning cables plugged in around the house. Why would it be better to have to buy several "charging pads" in their place?

Why does inductive charging have to be via a pad? A pad is just one of the options and likely won't be the default charging method Apple provides with the phone. It will likely come with a cable inductive charger like the one that comes with the Apple Watch. So you could charge while you use your device just like now--only a magnetic disc is much easier to connect/disconnect than a tiny lightning plug.

The cool thing about inductive charging is it opens up so many options for how to charge your device. You can use the AW-style cable, or you can use the many third party pads, docks, and mounts that are likely to follow. You're free to use any and all that suit your needs and almost all will rid you of the annoyance (how ever big or small it is in your eyes) of having to look at your phone and use two hands to plug in/unplug the charger. I think it's one of those things that's so slightly annoying that most don't question it, but once the annoyance is gone, people will never want it back in their lives.

Everyone is assuming its a giant pad and not something similar to the AW charger that attaches to the bottom of the phone.

Yeah, that's what I'm sayin'

You'd need to connect it to wire, just like you do now.

Do you know the ramifications of what would happen if Apple removed the lightning port because of wireless charging? You would have investors dumping shares.

The 3.5 Jack is a completely separate entity and isn't crucial to maintaining the life of the iPhone as is the lightning port.

The wireless charging is a secondary convenience factor, it's not primary. Wireless charging isn't necessarily a must, but it's an option for those who want the simplicity of charging. The lightning port, for now, is Apple's go to until USB-C, if that ever happens.

I can't see them adding inductive charging AND retaining the lightning port in the iPhone, it's completely redundant and there's only so much space in the phone. Why would keeping the lightning port be necessary to the life of the iPhone? Yes, this would be a move away from lightning ports across all their devices. Even if it's not now, I think this is inevitable, don't you?


Yes, inductive is not wireless, but it still has every practical advantage over lightning as far as I can tell. I think true wireless (long range) is an eventual goal for Apple and other device manufacturers, but it doesn't seem like the technology is anywhere near mature enough. This is at least better than what we have now.

 

[AdonisSMU]

No, you are wrong.

Firstly, a "charging pad" requires a flat surface to be on. Meaning tables, desks, nightstands, etc. Standalone lightning cables do not.

A "charging pad" would also require the iPhone to be lying on it at all times. Personally, I prefer to be able to charge my iPhone and use it at the same time. Next to my bed for example, I have a long lightning cable that I use to charge the phone while using it. With a charging pad, this would no longer be possible.

So this "wireless charging" doesn't grant you any freedom of movement at all. In fact, it restricts it.

Lastly, I have several lightning cables plugged in around the house. Why would it be better to have to buy several "charging pads" in their place?

If Apple implements it the way everyone else has then yes you'd be right. However, I hope Apple has a better solution than a matt otherwise it will be dead on arrival like the other wireless phone/matt implementations.

 

[The Game 161]

Hopefully quick charge comes too

 

[kgtenacious]

If all the phones are going to have the wireless charging, then it's obviously inductive charging; something Apple should have had years ago.

 

[Tech198]

We've seem mock up after concept.... I'd be more interested to know which one of them is correct...

Anytime u start saying "we're gonna put some thing in between or cover to shield something else" that's always where problem starts. Its not done right would be number #1. technical issues number #2. etc.

 

[Cloudkicker]

First I was like "yeah but wireless charging is so slow" but then I realized that the iPhone does not even have any Quickcharge technologies so this might be good thing.

Eek! I have an (October) 2015 Moto X Play w/ Rapid Charge wall plug & when I forget it & have to use a generic wall plug or car charger plug, I sure DO miss the Rapid Charge. The way it zips along is something I'm surprised Apple has never used.

I don't know if Samsung & other Android makers use this, but it's something you appreciate when you don't have it.

 

[farewelwilliams]

You might be over the headphone jack, but I am not, and I am sure there are a fair number of others that agree with me.

if you think Apple is going reintroduce the headphone jack to a product where they took out the headphone jack, you're insane. that's basically an admission of making a huge mistake taking out a jack.

will they continue to include it in the macbooks and ipads? probably. but they'll never reintroduce it in major new versions of the iPhone. i bet my life on it. it's forever gone from that product.

 

[Virinprew]

They why do so many people want wireless charging in an iPhone? If this is your stance now, don't you dare throw a parade if Apple decides to implement wireless charging.

I'm against the wireless charging (in its current form) and you ask me why people want it. How can I know? I'm not them.
As for the tech, if it can charge across the room, i will be interested. Until then no thanks.

 

[MobiusStrip]

Another useless gimmick from Jony Ive the hack.

Apple removes the audio output from its best-selling music players, and gives us this garbage. So now they have to integrate inductors and extra shielding into the phone, wasting space that should have been devoted to BATTERY.

And the price goes up. Apple has really taken the lead in driving the phone market backward. Now we have crippled phones with such puny batteries that they can't last half a day. They can't play your music. They will break at the slightest provocation, because they're idiotically made of glass. They don't audibly or palpably notify you if you missed a call (WTF).

When you look at how Jony Ive and Apple have destroyed their products... it's a lot like looking at Trump's agenda: Lay waste to a once-promising leader.

 

[MacBH928]

lets hope they keep a none-wireless charging option. I don't want wireless electricity around me, call me paranoid

 

[576316]

Really looking forward to this year's iPhone.

Okay. But please don't hold your breath. We've been burnt almost every year.

 

[Dominicanyor]

I believe that Samsung has wireless charging already. I'm not sure why Apple is still behind with the process. I really hope that the next iPhone will be one of the great one.

 

[Kabeyun]

Yes but if you start to get into having a bigger battery then there will always be people wanting bigger, bigger, bigger. I had this argument with many people complaining about the iPhone 5s and it's battery life. They all complained that it was impossible to get the claimed battery life on it so I tested it and proved them all wrong. I would argue now the same point I did then..people who complain about poor battery life tend to have EVERY feature turned on and also tend to be glued to their iPhone.
Like driving a car at 150mph all the time and complaining that the car runs out of fuel quickly.
Then complaining that the fuel tank needs to be bigger.

Point taken, but there's a middle ground where a phone is big enough to contain all of itself. The protruding camera is absurd, making most vulnerable the part you arguably need to protect most. Forces you to buy a case or bumper if you have any intention of, you know, putting it down. If not a bigger battery, let them have more RAM, or whatever. I'd rather have a flush camera and the extra space filled with air.

 

[SirRahikkala]

Eek! I have an (October) 2015 Moto X Play w/ Rapid Charge wall plug & when I forget it & have to use a generic wall plug or car charger plug, I sure DO miss the Rapid Charge. The way it zips along is something I'm surprised Apple has never used.

I don't know if Samsung & other Android makers use this, but it's something you appreciate when you don't have it.

To be honest, quite many android phones have had it already, some even years.
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I believe that Samsung has wireless charging already. I'm not sure why Apple is still behind with the process. I really hope that the next iPhone will be one of the great one.

Old Galaxy S6 had it 2015 already, LG G3 and Nokia Lumia 930 2014. Check the old list here: http://www.androidcentral.com/these-android-phones-can-handle-wireless-charging

 

[wwwrunaway]

At this point the price they charge for storage is insulting. That, along with that stupid $450 picture book of their products, and the offshoring of profits has really soured me on the apple premium. Those guys are totally out of touch surrounded by silicon valley excess. My new computer is a hackintosh. my new phone will be an SE. I could just as easily go windows and android. This is not like 1998. Operating systems are all a lot better and perfectly useable. Companies start going downhill when profit margin is their most important goal.

Having stated this, I am sure nobody cares. I'm just venting.

 

[sk1wbw]

Even if it is initially introduced with 'inductive' charging functionality, it could actually be using the short range RF charging as the receiver chip remains the same whether it is receiving from a short or long range.

Inductive charging is what people think wireless charging is.

 

[1Zach1]

Unless it's wireless at a distance, meh.

If it is, sign me up.

 

[trainwrecka]

Finally catching up to the Palm Pre.

 

[Jsameds]

Imagine a wireless router where the only way to maintain an internet connection would be to keep your PC/tablet/phone in constant contact with the router.