iPhone 8 Wireless Charging Reportedly Half the Speed of Current Standard

[MacRumors]

A recent report by Mac Otakara [Google Translate] has delved into a few of the specifications that could be coming to the inductive-style wireless charging feature of the iPhone 8, iPhone 7s, and iPhone 7s Plus. According to the site, citing a source well versed in the Wireless Power Consortium, Apple's devices will only support half of the power profile currently standard in Qi version 1.2, meaning the iPhone 8 will charge at a slower rate compared to other devices when using wireless charging.

Specifically, version 1.2 of the Qi standard allows for 15 watts of power transmitted from the wireless charging pad to the receiving device. According to the new report, the iPhone 8 will support half of that standard at a maximum of 7.5 watts of power (5 volts over 1.5 amps). While faster than Apple's current 5W USB power adapter, if the information turns out to be true then Apple's new line of iPhones would lack compatibility with more current Qi wireless charging accessories.

One example of a Qi wireless charging pad​

Apple is also expected to require third-party manufacturers to acquire a "Made for iPhone" license before marketing their charging pads as iPhone-compatible accessories.

Also, like the Apple Watch, which is Qi standard but can only be charged with a MFi chip-equipped charger, there is a possibility that the wireless charging function of the iPhone 8 series is bound by the MFi license.

While all three iPhones launching in 2017 are expected to include wireless charging of some kind, the ability might not be available to iPhone 8, iPhone 7s, and iPhone 7s Plus owners at launch. Over the summer it was rumored that software problems related to wireless charging were causing a "panic" at Apple, so the feature might not debut until an iOS 11 update later in the year, potentially alongside the retail releases of these MFi charging pads and Apple's own first-party accessory.

Article Link: iPhone 8 Wireless Charging Reportedly Half the Speed of Current Standard

 

[penajmz]

Version 1.2 will be a feature next year on iPhone 8s.

 

[Appleaker]

Of course, although if they did it at the current standard then they might not be able to make as much money from the 10W ‘fast’ charging adapter they’re planning to sell.

 

[questionmark32]

Well that really sucks, and you know it will be sold seperately at a much higher price in the Apple Store

 

[Mathias Denichi]

It’s just so much faster to connect magnetically then have to put a lightning cable all the way in the tiny charge port.

 

[djeeyore25]

Half the speed, double the cost.

 

[sshambles]

Bought a charging case and pad for $30 each that promised fast charging and yet was unreliable and slow. So this doesn't really come as a surprise tbh. Only decent as a feature if they can get it right (normal or faster charging) otherwise there's no point.

 

[HowieIsaacks]

First, this is a story about an unreleased and unannounced product. Second, I really don't think Apple is intentionally trying to harm its customers by allegedly making the (unannounced) wireless charging feature work slower. Perhaps this is an engineering trade-off meant to ensure safety or a better customer experience. Apple can't do anything without people whining. And it's often about the stupidest things!

 

[NIKKG]

Can't wait for the actual phone to come out, so tired of these lame rumors.

 

[Berti10]

I'm fine with slow-charging, as long as the battery's health lasts long. Have charged my iPhone 6 on a daily basis with mostly 1A and it aged well until lasts month. Now it dies within a day when not used and in 1h under load. With upgrading to 7S I'll expect an even longer health.

 

[Rogifan]

Why would I use this over my 29W charger?

 

[Andres Cantu]

Gotta save it for the 8s/9.

 

[centauratlas]

Can't wait for the actual phone to come out, so tired of these lame rumors.

By October 1, we'll be hearing rumors about the "iPhone 8S" and "iPhone 8S Plus" which might be called the "iPhone 9" of course. There is no getting away from it!

 

[RMo]

In other news, the iPhone 8 will only charge slightly faster than the current iPhone. Doesn't seem like that much of a problem to me (if I were as snarky as some people here, I'd say it wasn't even news). If they used the full 15 W that is allowed by v1.2, the iPhone charger would be rated higher than any charger currently included with Apple's iPads, including the 12.9-in. iPad Pro. It would also be just half of that provided with the USB-C MacBook.

Yeah, still seems reasonable to me. Slower charging is usually better for batteries' long-term health, so in addition to the above, this could very well be intentional (for non-evil reasons, despite comments above) on Apple's part.

 

[Naaaaak]

Apple PR continuing to leak "rumors" so downsides don't detract from the hype they are building.

 

[9594864]

Why would I use this over my 29W charger?

You wouldn't, and no one else would either.

Schiller announcing inductive charging will be so embarrassing haha

 

[Mr. Dee]

Yup, next year Phil will come up on stage and say twice as fast. If I was everybody, I'd skip this generation until next year. Just let them use these to make cubicles at Campus 2.

 

[soupcan]

Plugging it in with a cable requires less than a second and can deliver actual fast charging without the losses of induction charging. So please tell me again why wireless charging is not a gimmick.

 

[Gav2k]

#clickbaittitle

Honestly this isn’t news! It’ll charge faster than the provided charger so it’s faster that’s good!

 

[Mikkis]

"... there is a possibility that the wireless charging function of the iPhone 8 series is bound by the MFi license"

Yes it's a sad possibility and it is real wonder why Apple is given all kinds of environmental certificates while it is doing all it can to fill the planet with all the unnecessary iCrap. QI charging pads have been on the market several years now and it would be inconvenient that people could use them to charge iPhones.

 

[jrswizzle]

Why would I use this over my 29W charger?

Exactly - until wireless charging is ACTUALLY wireless, it’s all a gimmick anyway. I’ll continue to use my 29W adapter regardless of what other charging options the new device has.

What if I told you that I had invented this new wireless internet that you don’t have to plug an Ethernet cable into your computer anymore - you simply put your laptop or device on this mat and you’re instantly connected to the web....but it has to stay on the wireless internet mat or else you lose connection.....

That’s the ridiculousness of “wireless” charging these days.

 

[newyorksole]

First, this is a story about an unreleased and unannounced product. Second, I really don't think Apple is intentionally trying to harm its customers by allegedly making the (unannounced) wireless charging feature work slower. Perhaps this is an engineering trade-off meant to ensure safety or a better customer experience. Apple can't do anything without people whining. And it's often about the stupidest things!

Most stories here are about unreleased and unannounced products... Lol

 

[jrswizzle]

In other news, the iPhone 8 will only charge slightly faster than the current iPhone. Doesn't seem like that much of a problem to me (if I were as snarky as some people here, I'd say it wasn't even news). If they used the full 15 W that is allowed by v1.2, the iPhone charger would be rated higher than any charger currently included with Apple's iPads, including the 12.9-in. iPad Pro. It would also be just half of that provided with the USB-C MacBook.

Yeah, still seems reasonable to me. Slower charging is usually better for batteries' long-term health, so in addition to the above, this could very well be intentional (for non-evil reasons, despite comments above) on Apple's part.

I see it all the time - after 6 months all the folks around me with Android devices begin to complain about battery life. I wonder why that is? Maybe Apple engineers know something that keyboard warriors on the internet don’t?

 

[tdar]

This has to be the thing that Apple does that infuriates me the most. It would be one thing if they did not follow the standard and we found that the "Apple" standard charged your phone in half the time. Or that they discovered how to make you not need a charging pad at all (something that they are working on). But to not follow the standard, require Apple or Apple approved (and $$ licensed) chargers that will preform at only half of the rate as commodity chargers that are already available is just maddening. Oh and how am I supposed to use the charger built into my car?

 

[profets]

Why would I use this over my 29W charger?

Out of curiosity, do you really use a 29W charger for your iPhone? I thought the current max charge rate for iPhones is 12W?