Apple Exploring Wireless Charging for iPhone as Early as 2013?

[ConCat]

See, the problem people have here is they don't understand the wireless charging market. Inductive charging is, to say the least, pointless because it requires the device to be tethered to something which is plugged in, why not just plug it directly into the phone? No real advantage here. There is another tech out there though that allows "true" wireless charging at a distance. This means that you can sit in your favorite chair watching movies on your iPad while the device is charging, and NOT tethered to the wall. That's real innovation. Inductive charging is not.

 

[JaySoul]

I wirelessly sync my iPhone sometimes. It's slower but it can be more convenient without a cable.

Wirelessly charging is surely the same principal.

I don't see how people can be so negative, there is no gun to your head - plus it is all theoretical anyway.

 

[Mactendo]

If they can make it so the phone will charge if it is within, lets say 1 foot of the base station, I think that would be awesome. I could just put my phone on the nightstand/desk and have it charge automatically. This way I don't forget to charge it ever again.

Like there're no enough ways to get cancer...

 

[The Phazer]

The basics have to be explored first.

Nope. You don't roll out the basics until they're as good as what you already have.

I thought we had proven that with Maps.

This delivers no benefits, and your proposal of a future vision has pretty fundamental problems physics wise in any enviorment where humans have to live.

Meanwhile it makes devices thicker, slower and less usable. Apple haven't even managed to get wireless syncing to work correctly yet, and that's a much simpler issue.

 

[prowlmedia]

I'd welcome this, mainly as lightning cables are total **** and are very likely to break.

Makes you think If they are infact thinking about this, what was the point in launching Lightning cables in the first place?

What are you talking about. The lighting cable is way more adaptive than anything out there of it's size. Can handle much more power than a mUSB and is much more useful generally. I've looked at the specs for using it for an accessory and it's great. Oh and it's tensile strength at the connector is much, much better than the small USB's

Wireless would be a good add on. But i suspect it will be a slower method. Now what I think would be good would be a low power high range charge. could have whole starbucks as charging zones... and before you crackpots go on about electromagnetic waves... these are no more than we have naturally anyway. We are getting way less than we used to anyway

Apples all about the efficiency and saving waste. and given the iphone is the lowest charging cost ( $0.41 !!! a year ) I'd be suprised to see a way less efficient solution

The thing is the Pads have to be plugged in anyway and presumably are always sucking a tiny mount of power..

And looking at nokias they are £49 - £79 just for the pads... so 11-20 years charging cost

Personally I'd prefer to see the inscreen solar tech, or some form of manual charging via shaking. I've see that tech and it works. would be fantastic if you were stuck somewhere powerless.

 

[sexiewasd]

If they used it to make the iPhone waterproof with no external openings or buttons then I can see a use in it. Under water iPhone photography would be kinda sweet, but there is no chance of that happening so long as people like using earbuds. Samsung I can see doing this, where they have many different models of phone to cater to different needs.

 

[prowlmedia]

Like there're no enough ways to get cancer...

Theres more electromagnetic heat radiation coming from your bedside lamp. This is not a charging a Tesla model S. Perhaps we can get you a Tinfoil hat?

 

[Sylon]

"Apple is said to be working on their own wireless charging system..."

Because the industry standard is apparently too good for them. That means nothing on the market right now will work with it, allowing Apple to charge up the ass for the accessories.

"The charger will still have to be plugged into a wall outlet..."

No **** sherlock. Its not going to manifest energy out of thin air.


As an owner of an Android device (gasp!) and also owning a wireless charging dock for it, I can say that they are pretty convenient to have. You don't have to worry about plugging the cable into the bottom of the phone, which isn't the most fun task to do in the dark. It helps reduce the wear on both the cable and the port on the phone. And I also heard that the wireless charger helps reduce the stress of charging on the battery, thus prolonging its life. Now that last part is speculation, its just what I heard.

They are somewhat of a novelty, sure. But they are pretty cool and add some convenience to the mundane task of charging your phone.

 

[prowlmedia]

I wonder how much Mac Rumours are getting paid to advertise the App stories? Its a classic case of adverts presented as news! Do you think we are thick?

To be fair, I've seen that App reviews on quite a few sites. It is interesting idea... just a con at $.99 per transaction + 4% per person!

Anyway... you are posting in the wrong Thread

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Why on earth does anyone care about wireless charging?

See, the problem people have here is they don't understand the wireless charging market. Inductive charging is, to say the least, pointless because it requires the device to be tethered to something which is plugged in, why not just plug it directly into the phone? No real advantage here.

Conceptually, it's a more natural way to use a device. A couple common scenarios:

When you are in your car no more time wasting step of plugging into the USB jack; just set it on the car's integrated charger platform. When you arrive at your destination you just grab and go vs. now having to unplug, which can be awkward depending on where the phone storage is in the car. Mine is in the center console, so I have to do a bit of contorting to hold the phone in one hand and pull the plug w/ another.

You get home at night, set it on the desk or nightstand like anything else; your keys, wallet. No need to bother about plugging and unplugging. When you leave in the AM your phone will be fully charged.

Of course the problem w/ inductive charging so far is that it's wildly inefficient and slow, and also adds bulk to a device. Those things cancel out any benefits which I think is why Apple at least hasn't incorporated it. If they can improve on those items though it will be a killer feature to those of us who would love to lighten our hassle load by one.

 

[MonkeySee....]

Dont really see the advantage of this.

They will need it for their watch

 

[Jsameds]

But we have to start somewhere to get to where we want to be. Imagine installing a wireless charger into your house which transmits energy universally to all your battery powered devices, so you literally don't have to plug in any more of your iPods, laptops, phones, cameras, etc etc to charge up; it all happens wirelessly from one point. The basics have to be explored first.

I get that, but that doesn't mean I should be a beta tester for a technology that's clearly not ready yet.

 

[bushido]

useless unless u could charge it magically from anywhere in the house ^^

 

[ConCat]

useless unless u could charge it magically from anywhere in the house ^^

Bingo. That tech exists, and it's called WiTricity. That's the tech we should be interested in, not this inductive charging nonsense. Someday we could have WiTricity transmitters all over the world just like cell towers are today. Devices would still need decent sized batteries for places with poor coverage, but they could have a "low power" mode for areas with no WiTricity coverage, and a "high power" mode for everywhere else. It really makes you think.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Bingo. That tech exists, and it's called WiTricity. That's the tech we should be interested in, not this inductive charging nonsense.

Right, but that's like saying in the 1940s that the U.S. should forget about Black and White TVs and just wait for HDTV because the picture on a B&W is fuzzy and gray. There is always intermediary technology. WiTricity is years away for all practical purposes.

 

[andalusia]

I get that, but that doesn't mean I should be a beta tester for a technology that's clearly not ready yet.

Nope. You don't roll out the basics until they're as good as what you already have.

I thought we had proven that with Maps.

This delivers no benefits, and your proposal of a future vision has pretty fundamental problems physics wise in any enviorment where humans have to live.

Meanwhile it makes devices thicker, slower and less usable. Apple haven't even managed to get wireless syncing to work correctly yet, and that's a much simpler issue.

I'm working under the assumption that if the charging wasn't as efficient or up to scratch as current wired charging, they'd leave the lightning port and offer wired charging as well. If they'd left Google Maps alongside Apple Maps, there would have been less of an issue. I get the impression people in this thread are complaining about the technology itself, rather than what Apple are planning to do with it, considering nobody actually knows what Apple are planning to do with it.

As for the physics, I don't pretend to know anything about how wireless charging would work, but I'm open to the idea that nearly anything is possible.

 

[DudeDad]

+1

Honestly don't bother. They should focus on longer battery life.

Agree...although, when they develop wifi charging, so you can walk around and constantly charge the phone, I'll start listening!

 

[BvizioN]

Yes and they will insist they invented it. Nokia might have just popularized inductive charging with their full array of accessories. I hate how Apple shows no respect to one of the "founding fathers" of the cell phone industry.

----------



Nokia is planning a car charging dock that will allow the phone to be in full use. They already have a table dock that allows the same thing.

Image

Can you please explain to me how is that thing wireless?
And founding father of cell phones? Agreed! Smartphones? Hardly. We all know who it is.

 

[mattopotamus]

It's more for the sake of a little extra convenience, I use a Wireless Charger because all I have to do is set it on a little orb and not fumble in the dark trying to find the port on the bottom. I also like the angle it sits at.

Image

The lightning charger goes in both ways, is there a point? Yes, a little extra convenience. Is wireless syncing pointless? No, it's a little more convenient.

that is my exact set up. It is nice in the middle of the night not having to hang half way off my bead to answer the phone. I can just reach over and pick the phone up.

 

[M-O]

Dont really see the advantage of this.

instead of walking over to the outlet to plug in your iPhone, you just have to walk over to the outlet to place your iPhone on the charge mat.

yay!

#useless

 

[Vegasman]

Seems pointless... until you use it

Having wireless charging on my phone, I can say it is much like keyless entry for my car. It seems totally pointless... until you use it. I mean, really, is it that much work to press the little button on your keyfob to unlock the doors? It turns out the answer is yes. My next car will have it. And the one after that too.

Same goes with wireless charging.

 

[ChristianVirtual]

I find wireless charging more useful compared to a fingerprint sensor ... A convenience function for sure. Just place the phone in night time on a pad and get it charged while I sleep sounds good to me.

 

[ConCat]

Right, but that's like saying in the 1940s that the U.S. should forget about Black and White TVs and just wait for HDTV because the picture on a B&W is fuzzy and gray. There is always intermediary technology. WiTricity is years away for all practical purposes.

It's isn't quite like that. There's already tech out there that you can purchase, it's just extremely expensive and not meant for average consumers.

 

[Tankmaze]

if apple could design the phone without port, charging and syncing wirelessly.
and make it waterproof, then i'm sold!!

the only advantage of wireless charging is they don't need lightning anymore, but I really doubt apple would go away with the port anytime soon.

 

[szw-mapple fan]

If they were going wireless, why bother switching to lightning? It makes no sense.