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iPhone X Charging Speeds Compared: The Fastest and Easiest Ways to Charge Your iPhone
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I think if you would charge a lot and also the battery heats up a lot then yes it would effect the battery life. My old phone was Samsung S6 and i was charging at least 3-4 times a day on fast charge in last few months as battery was terrible on it and last week the processor was gone. No warning signs or anything. Showed to Samsung and some repair shops all said the motherboard went bust.
With iphone 8 which i have now, at least the phone is guaranteed to work almost a day and at most u may be charging thrice in 2 day period? Maybe?
They ship it with the physically smallest charger, which is absolutely fine for overnight (as most people use it). (Though I'd prefer the one shipped with the Apple Watch, where the prongs retract)
I use only one. Don't get the fascination of charging the phone super quick. I place id on my charging pad late on the evening when heading to bed and it still have at least 35% remaining battery and pick it up in the morning fully charged. If I travel long distances (abroad) I take the charging brick with me as a back up.
I'd argue that fast charging shortens battery's lifespan even if does not heat it up (perceived externally).
I really feel bad for people who still use iPhone's bundled charger..I mean 5W is just pathetic there is ZERO reason one should use that vs iPad charger..it's a big shame and frankly anti-consumer of Apple still bundling that inside iPhone box..the iPad charger is MUCH more appropriate and charges the iPhone twice as fast..
I can't remember the last time I used an iPhone's bundled charger,I don't even take them out of box.
It's bizarre that Apple themselves market and sell the "iPad" charger as compatible iPhone charger, yet they even refuse to provide customers with such basic peripheral that can make life so much easier instead of the ancient, snail charger they pack in..
sometime I really feel and sad and frustrated about things Apple does.
It's good that there is tough competition from Samsung and others, otherwise Apple was probablystill selling iPhone 5 series form factor with slight speed bump
I can't remember the last time I used an iPhone's bundled charger,I don't even take them out of box.
It's bizarre that Apple themselves market and sell the "iPad" charger as compatible iPhone charger, yet they even refuse to provide customers with such basic peripheral that can make life so much easier instead of the ancient, snail charger they pack in..
sometime I really feel and sad and frustrated about things Apple does.
It's good that there is tough competition from Samsung and others, otherwise Apple was probablystill selling iPhone 5 series form factor with slight speed bump
Thanks for the sentiment, but I'm OK using the bundled charger overnight. If I have to top up the phone during the day I connect it to my Mac or use my car charger. I can see where some people need a faster charging method, but I suspect that most don't.
My One Plus 5 charges to 80% in 20 minutes, so while iPhone X has a slew of various charging methods, it seems to be one of the slower charging phones on the market.
Just saying that Apple should be much further ahead of the pack on all feature categories, including charging speed; when an upstart Chinese company can deliver better charging technology then a company worth near 1 trillion there is something wrong there.
If Apple wants the more then $900 CDN extra it would cost me to go from my One Plus 5 to iPhone X, it better lead in ALL categories.
Just saying that Apple should be much further ahead of the pack on all feature categories, including charging speed; when an upstart Chinese company can deliver better charging technology then a company worth near 1 trillion there is something wrong there.
If Apple wants the more then $900 CDN extra it would cost me to go from my One Plus 5 to iPhone X, it better lead in ALL categories.
Agreed. That and I have three fast Anker chargers throughout my house and workplace. I even have several iPad chargers. So it doesn’t bother me much. Hit Amazon for Anker’s 2 port 24 watt $11 charger. Charges almost as fast as Apples $79 fast charging and has two ports.
I have a USB power meter and it measures 6w peak when charging iPhone X with 11.2, it tends to bounce around so I'd guess the average is probably nearer 5w still. Which is a shame as I bought several specifically for faster charging instead of the ebay chargers which are £3
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I have the Ravpower RP-PC014 and it doesnt appear to fast charge, peak power when tested was 6w.
Is this wireless fast charge? The chart doesn't indicate. I imagine not, because I wasn't getting anything near that charge rate on the X wirelessly.It must be a good joke then:
I still use wirless almost exclusively, mind you, for the convenience alone. Keeping the phone constantly topped off on my desk and having an easy spot to set down on my nightstand is a boon. But It takes a couple hours to charge the phone from single digits when I tested.
You prefer to do things the hard way.I guess some people dislike convinience.
you wouldn’t lose anything if the charger they supplied in you phone box was the better,faster one regardless.only you would appreciate the better tech.
I see your point. And to an extent I agree with it. However, the 5w included charger is INCREDIBLY convenient when charging at airports and colleges and crowded places. No way I could fit an iPad charger anywhere in those places. All these rapid chargers are huge - the 5w adapter is perfect for travel. --- Disclaimer: I traveled more this year for work than in my entire life combined.
Charging overnight was perfect because my 8+ easily holds its charge for more than a day with my usage.
But yeah, for a $1080+ phone, I'd have really appreciated a faster charger - but I already have 4+ of those around the house/work. So really, I don't really care - I much prefer my multi-ported Anker chargers than a 1 port iPad charger. On top of that, Apple will probably charge $30+ for the rapid charger. My $11 Anker (https://www.amazon.com/Anker-2-Port...&qid=1512575919&sr=8-9&keywords=anker+charger) charges almost just as fast.
I dunno if I'd go so far as to say it's the HARD way. Imo, charging overnight with the 5w brick is the easy way. But that works for people like me who are light to medium users who end the day with easily tons of charge left.
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Question - what about mixing a USB-C charger with a wireless charging pad? Right now my wireless charging pad is plugged into an iPad charger. Seems faster than when plugged into my iPhone charger (though I haven't measured). Seems like the parallel should be that the faster USB-C charger would provide a further bump. Or, is the wireless charger the limiting factor at that point i.e. it's already maxed out with the iPad charger?
@anthonymoody I believe the max output of the wireless is 7.5 regardless of what it is connected to.
Gotcha. Makes sense. I wonder when the next meaningful jump will occur, to say 10 or 15, and whether the iPhone X is built to accept that speed wirelessly.
This are the kind of articles that make me proud of being member of this community. As others said, kudos to the author.
Axis should be flipped: time horizontal, charge on vertical, one line per charger.
Very useful information.
To me it means, buy whatever Qi charger is best for you. I've purchased 4 Qi chargers for the price of one Belkin Boost Up and they work just fine.
According to this chart, I'm not missing anything that's worth 4x the cost.
To me it means, buy whatever Qi charger is best for you. I've purchased 4 Qi chargers for the price of one Belkin Boost Up and they work just fine.
According to this chart, I'm not missing anything that's worth 4x the cost.
With the addition of both fast charging and wireless charging to Apple's 2017 iPhone lineup, there are more ways than ever to charge your iPhone. Every method is different -- some are faster and more expensive, while others are slower but more convenient.
We tested several charging accessories from both Apple and third-party manufacturers with the iPhone X to see how charging speeds compare across different charging methods. These tests also apply to the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, which share many of the same features available in the iPhone X.
Accessories Tested
- Apple's default 5W iPhone charger (Free with iPhone, $19 alone)
- 5W wireless charger from Choetech ($16)
- 7.5W Belkin Boost Up Wireless Charging Pad from Apple ($59.95) (Tested at 5W and 7.5W)
- Apple's default 12W iPad charger (Free with iPad, $19 alone)
- 18W USB-C power adapter from Choetech ($17.99)
- 29W USB-C power adapter from Apple (Free with 12-inch MacBook, $49 alone)
- 30W USB-C power adapter from Anker ($30)
- 87W USB-C power adapter from Apple (Free with 15-inch MacBook, $79 alone)
The 5W and 12W chargers from Apple were paired with a standard Lightning cable from Apple, priced starting at $19. All USB-C charging accessories were paired with a USB-C to Lightning cable from Apple, priced starting at $25.
Methodology
We used the same iPhone X for all tests, plugged into the same outlet. Between tests, the battery was drained to one percent, and then battery percent was checked at 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes, and 60 minutes while charging.
For all tests, the iPhone X was placed into Airplane mode with no apps running. The display was deactivated except for the four time checks. Tests were conducted without a case on the iPhone X.
Results
The absolute fastest way to charge an iPhone 8, iPhone X, or iPhone 8 Plus is with a USB-C power adapter and an accompanying USB-C to Lightning cable. Charging with USB-C activates a "fast-charge" feature that's designed to charge the iPhone to around 50% in 30 minutes, and I saw about that level of charge in all of my USB-C tests.
5W wireless charging and 5W wired charging with the standard iPhone adapter were the slowest methods that I tested. 7.5W wireless testing was faster than 5W wireless charging, but not by much.
Click to enlarge
Charging at 12W with the iPad adapter wasn't ultimately too far off of the fast charging results at the end of an hour, making this one of the better compromises between cost and speed.
USB-C
I tested both Apple's 29W and 87W USB-C chargers that come with the 12-inch MacBook and the 15-inch MacBook Pro, respectively, along with much cheaper 18W and 30W chargers from Choetech and Anker. I saw little difference in charging speeds between 18W and 87W.
Click to enlarge
At the 30 minute mark in all tests, my phone was charged to between 45 and 49%, and at 60 minutes, I reached 77 to 79% battery life. The slowest charger was the Anker 30W, but the overall difference was so small that I think it can be chalked up to random variance. My charts are using 1 charging result, but I did test many of these chargers multiple times with the same general results.
Apple's 29W MacBook charger costs $49 and the USB-C to Lightning cable costs $25, so you're looking at about $75 for this charging method, but luckily, third party USB-C power adapters work the same way and are more affordable. That 18W Choetech charger I tested, for example, is just $18, while the one from Anker is $30.
There are cheaper non-official USB-C to Lightning cables on Amazon, but given the problems we've seen with some third-party USB-C cables, it may be best to stick with verified Apple hardware as far as the cable goes. I didn't test third-party Lightning to USB-C cables, but I wouldn't expect to see major speed differences.
Apple's 29W USB-C power adapter and USB-C to Lightning cable
If you go with Apple's cable and something like the 18W Choetech charger, you can get a fast charge setup for just over $40. If you want to try your luck with a non-official cable, you can get fast charging for under $30.
Choetech's 18W USB-C power adapter and Anker's 30W USB-C power adapter
Standard iPad and iPhone Chargers
All of Apple's iPhones ship with a standard 5W power adapter and USB-A to Lightning cable, and charging with the standard setup is excruciatingly slow comparative to other charging methods. It's not faster than 7.5W wireless charging and it can't compare to charging with power adapters that put out more juice. At 30 minutes, for example, it had only charged my iPhone to 21 percent, and I only made it to 39 percent after 60 minutes.
Apple's 5W iPhone charger and 12W iPad charger
Apple's 12W iPad charger is much quicker, though, and it's affordable at $19. With the 12W iPad charger and a standard Lightning cable, I saw charging speeds that weren't too far off of what I got when charging with a USB-C power adapter. At the 30 minute mark, my iPhone charged to 39 percent, and at the 60 minute mark, I hit 72 percent.
That's not too bad for a setup that's one of the most affordable I found, and there are a lot of 12W equivalent third-party charging options on the market, including several with multiple ports and other conveniences.
Wireless Chargers
In general, wireless charging is slower than wired charging, but it's undeniably convenient, and if you're charging for a lengthy period of time, say at your desk at work or overnight on the night stand, the slower charging doesn't matter.
That said, 7.5W wireless charging, which was activated in iOS 11.2, was faster than the standard 5W wired charging method in my testing. There's also a noticeable but slight speed difference between 5W wireless charging and 7.5W wireless charging.
Click to enlarge
I tested this difference using the 7.5W wireless charger from Belkin, which Apple sells, on both iOS 11.2 and iOS 11.1.2, which limited iPhone charging to 5W. The Belkin 5W charging result on iOS 11.1.2 is the result included in my graph.
I also tested a Choetech 5W charger that was much slower than the Belkin at 5W, so much so that I wasn't sure it was an accurate representation of 5W charging. From 1%:
- 15 minutes: 9%
- 30 minutes: 19%
- 45 minutes: 27%
- 60 minutes: 35%
There wasn't a huge difference between 5W and 7.5W charging in my experience, but 7.5W is faster. If you're buying a wireless charger, it's worthwhile to get a 7.5W+ charger that offers faster charging for the iPhone, but which chargers are compatible with 7.5W wireless charging remains something of a mystery.
We know the Belkin and Mophie chargers that Apple sells offer the faster wireless charging option, but it's not entirely clear if other higher-watt chargers from third-party manufacturers are able to charge the iPhone X, 8, and 8 Plus at higher speeds.
The Mophie and Belkin wireless charging docks
For a separate post on wireless charging options, we've been investigating third-party wireless chargers, and it's looking like there may be a restriction put in place by Apple to limit 7.5W charging to approved manufacturers. As an example, on the Amazon page for this charger from Choetech, which says it is 7.5W, there is this message:We've heard similar information from other manufacturers, but it's all very nebulous and not something Apple has clearly outlined at this point. For that reason, if you want confirmed 7.5W wireless charging, go with the Belkin, the Mophie, or another charger that specifically states that it's compatible with Apple's 7.5W charging.
Just because a wireless charger offers more than 5W, it's not necessarily going to offer 7.5W charging speeds when used with an iPhone. If you're using wireless charging on the night stand or when sitting at a desk for long periods of time, 5W is perfectly adequate, and the third-party chargers are much more affordable than the Belkin and Mophie chargers.
Choetech's 5W wireless charger
On the subject of wireless charging, I also tested to see if case thickness impacts charging speed. I tested with a naked iPhone X, an iPhone X in Apple's Silicone case, and an iPhone X with one of the thickest backs I could find, the glitter-filled iPhone X case from Casetify. Charging speeds were almost identical in all three tests, and while the Casetify case was maybe about 2 percent slower, that can perhaps be chalked up to margin of error. There was zero difference with the thinner Apple case.
If your case works with wireless charging at all (and most do, with the exception of those that have rear magnets or are made from aluminum), it's going to charge at the same speed or nearly the same speed as a naked iPhone.
Conclusion
To get fast charging on iPhone X, iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus, you don't need anything over 18W, and you don't need a USB-C power adapter that's from Apple. The third-party options work just as well, but you will probably want to pick up Apple's USB-C to Lightning cable over the alternatives.
Fast charging is going to get you the best charging times, but for less money, you can get the 12W iPad charger and use it with a standard Lightning cable to charge your iPhone almost as fast as you can charge it with fast charging. There's only about a 10 percent difference between the 12W iPad charger and USB-C charging.
It's not really worth it using the 5W charger that the iPhone ships with if you can help it, because it's incredibly slow.
Wireless charging is also a comparatively slow charging method, but it's convenient to be able to set your iPhone right next to you on a wireless charger and pick it up when necessary without the need to hassle with a cord.
Article Link: iPhone X Charging Speeds Compared: The Fastest and Easiest Ways to Charge Your iPhone
Thus basically USB-C charging is the fastest.
Major rapid charging improvements are required in the future iPhone devices for both wired and wireless is. Hoping 2018 iPhones have a significant 40% faster wireless and wired charging!!
PS: when will Apple apply USB-C data speeds for Lightning Cables and ports in iPhones, iPads?!
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Weird conclusion given that at least 80% of the people owning an iPhone only charge it at night and don't care if it charges 50% faster. It's also better for the battery because it generates less heat for the battery.