A Chinese tech company has developed a smartphone battery that charges to 50% in 5 minutes

Huawei, the Chinese smartphone giant, has developed a battery that can charge to 48% in around five minutes, the BBC reports.

Fast charging technology works by including sturdier components which can deal with a higher power input, according to Android Authority.

Qualcomm has also been experimenting with fast charging, offering a 60% charge in five minutes. Samsung's Galaxy S6 handsets can get four hours of usage from 10 minutes charge.

Huawei also developed a battery that can charge to nearly 70% in two minutes, but it is not big enough to power a smartphone for an extended period of time.

Enabling fast battery charging is one way of compensating for the relative lack of progress being made by big tech companies.

Here is a video of the smartphone charging to 50% in five minutes: