Somehow, competing with a camera’s megapixel count has become out of style. In addition, it is challenging given the state of technology today. Gradually, the numerical race came to an end in one direction and started in another. Manufacturers are currently developing ever-new technical gimmicks in an attempt to charge their devices’ batteries as rapidly as possible. Thus, while only a handful of people were aware of the charger’s wattage three to four years ago, everyone is now curious about this indicator and becomes agitated if the kit does not include a more potent power supply. All of this is well and good, but there’s always room for improvement. There are also wireless charging phone cases on the market, which we already mentioned in our previous article: https://wirelessdevnet.com/wireless-charging-phone-case-how-useful-this-can-be/
Xiaomi has recently introduced a new solution that enables faster wireless charging than wired charging. Could this be done?
Fast Charging on Xiaomi
Like other Chinese smartphone makers, Xiaomi has made the decision to intensify its efforts in the area of wireless charging. A new 80W solution from the company claims to be able to charge a 4000 mAh battery in just 19 minutes.
The intermediate values that people frequently like to boast about are also very impressive, but that figure alone already commands a lot of respect. According to Xiaomi, you can obtain up to 50% in just eight minutes and 10% in just one minute. Simply turn it on for a few minutes before leaving the house to ensure that you have enough charge for half a day. Ten percent should last your smartphone for two to three hours.
Not even 50% is what I mean. It should be sufficient for a day if you don’t play and disable any unnecessary apps. Remind yourself that we are discussing wireless charging. As is customary in military aviation, this is even more promising than the vast majority of wired analogs currently available on the market. It is also faster.
The previous best for fast wireless charging held by Xiaomi was 50W. The Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra smartphone displays it. This smartphone’s test results were really impressive. It can charge a 4500 mAh battery to full capacity in just 40 minutes. Once more, how many smartphones are able to charge that quickly over a wire, even with so-called fast charging? Yes, there are, but they’re not many.
When can a smartphone charge more quickly?
With the release of the new wireless charging, Xiaomi will be able to take the lead in the industry and make yet another breakthrough. The intriguing part, though, isn’t even that—rather, it’s the fact that other manufacturers will take a strong hit and be compelled to follow suit. Therefore, we can also predict that faster speeds are not far off.
Given that Xiaomi has achieved 80W wireless charging, achieving the 100W target doesn’t seem unachievable. Although Xiaomi hasn’t stated when we can expect to see the new wireless charging technology in use, it is most likely going to be showcased on the company’s upcoming flagship devices. Early in the following year, those will be the Mi 11 series smartphones.
The problem of battery deterioration persists when employing these solutions for rapid charging. Yes, you wouldn’t want to charge your smartphone so quickly just to replace it a few months later.
Is fast charging safe?
Since the technology hasn’t completely emerged from the labs, journalists and bloggers haven’t published any test results. However, some information is currently available. For instance, Oppo, a significant player in the fast wired charging market, has acknowledged that, in tests involving the 125W charging technology, battery life decreases to 80% after 800 cycles of charge and discharge.
Though it doesn’t seem like much, this isn’t. In actuality, this figure doesn’t appear innocent, and something needs to be done about it. Eighty percent is not when the smartphone started to function after two days of operation. There is a significant risk of ballooning and even ignition at this point due to the severe wear and tear.
If batteries need to be changed so frequently, nobody will want to do it and the manufacturer won’t want to take accountability for any potential fallout. Thus, work in this area needs to be done. Imagine the impact on the environment alone of twice as many spent batteries flooding the planet. Particularly considering that there are already far too many of them and serious problems with recycling. We have no choice but to wait patiently for the future, which is rapidly approaching, given how batteries have changed over the past ten to twenty years. This is the way of the future since we will eventually stop using the wired charging method. It simply won’t go any quicker.