Rumors about wireless charging coming to Apple's upcoming iPhones were thrown into the limelight again this week when Slashleaks posted an alleged photo of a wireless charging module designed for the "iPhone 8."
Wireless charging would be a new feature for Apple's iPhone, and it's certainly futuristic. It's charging... without a wired connection. Except, there is a wired connection for the wireless charging dock to get the power in the first place.
Wireless charging is only an OK feature to have. The only problem it solves is fumbling around the floor for a charging cable. Sure, it's nice to simply place your phone on a wireless charging dock or pad on your nightstand so it charges overnight, or while you're at work so your phone's battery is continuously topped up. Otherwise, wireless charging has proven to be slower than wired charging in most phones. And because wireless charging requires your phone to stay in contact with a wireless charging dock, you can't pick it up and use it while it's charging wirelessly.
So, wireless charging gives you slower charging speeds and your phone needs to stay on the wireless charging dock. That doesn't seem very useful.
Quick charging, on the other hand, is far more useful. You plug your phone into a quick charger, and it gets hours of battery life from just a few minutes of charging. And you can keep using your phone while it's quick charging. It's something that Android phones have featured over the last couple of years while iPhone users have been stuck with regular, comparatively slow charging.
YouTube/SuperSaf TV
The Galaxy S7 Edge's quick charging feature lets it charge much faster than the iPhone 7.
A perfect example
On Thursday morning, I realized my iPhone wasn't plugged in. It had 1% battery life remaining, and I had 35 minutes to charge it before I walked out the door to start my hour and a half commute to work. As you would, I scrambled to plug in my iPhone. This is when quick charging would have come in handy.
In the 35 minutes it takes me to get ready, the Galaxy S8+ with quick charging would have charged up to 48%, while the iPhone 7 Plus' standard charger only gives the phone 27%. That's according to a charging speed test video conducted by YouTuber "XeeTechCare."
YouTube/XEETECHCARE
Another charging speed test video by YouTuber "Jimmy is Promo" shows what would have happened had I used Samsung's "fast" wireless charger with the smaller Galaxy S8. It would only have charged up to 24%, while the S8's quick wired charger would have given it 43%.
YouTube/XEETECHCARE
So, whether I was using the iPhone's standard charger or the Galaxy S8's fast wireless charger, I would only have between 24-27% battery life for my hour-and-a-half commute. That's just enough power to get my iPhone through my commute when the screen is constantly on from browsing the web and social media, and using Bluetooth headphones to listen to music or watch YouTube videos.
Personally, I'd take quick wired charging over wireless charging any day.
