It’s hard to make smartphone batteries much bigger without adding size and weight to the phone. And phone makers have largely abandoned removable batteries. So over the past few years we’ve seen a focus on making it easier and faster to charge your phone’s battery.
Wireless charging lets you top off your battery simply by placing your phone on a charging surface, with no wires to fiddle with.
Fast charging, meanwhile, lets you refuel your battery without tethering yourself to a charger for too long. How long it too long? That’s probably a matter of user preference, but over the past few years we’ve seen fast charging tech get faster and faster.
Last year Oppo released a “Super VOOC” charger that could take a phone with a 3,400 mAh battery from zero to 100 percent charged in 35 minutes. Now rival Xiaomi is showing off a system that can charge a phone with a bigger battery in just over half the time.
In a demo video posted to Chinese social media site Weibo, Xiaomi president Lin Bin shows its new 100 watt fast charger taking a phone with a 4,000 mAh battery from empty to full in just 17 minutes.
Is that a huge advantage if you normally just plug in your phone before bedtime and unplug it in the morning? Probably not. But if you don’t usually get through a day without stopping to charge your phone once or twice, this means that you could plug in your phone for just a few minutes and probably get enough extra juice to run for hours.
On the down side, the lithium-ion batteries used in smartphones have a limited number of charge cycles. So the more often you charge your phone, the more the battery will degrade — a phone that lasts all day on a charge when you first start using it may die at mid-day after a year or two. Getting in the habit of using your phone heavily and then charging it multiple times a day could theoretically accelerate the process. The good news is that if you eventually need to charge your phone multiple times a day, it won’t take long with a fast charger.
Device makers also have to balance heat generation with charging to ensure that hardware doesn’t overheat. I have to assume Xiaomi has some sort of solution here, or the company wouldn’t be getting ready to launch the new technology.
Xiaomi is expected to reveal more details about its 100 watt fast charging system tomorrow.
via Phone Radar and MySmartPrice
https://www.fastcompany.com/90165365/smartphones-are-wrecking-the-planet-faster-than-anyone-expected
In case you’re interested, here’s some data:
100W on the new Xiaomi TurboCharge device is going:
0% – 10% (200 mAh per min) = 400mAh in 2 minutes
10% – 90% (290 mAh per min) = 3,200mAh in 11 minutes**
90% – 100% (100 mAh per min) = 400mAh in 4 minutes
Total Charge (~235 mAh per min) = 4,000 mAh in 17 minutes
(I won’t comment on Huawei’s SuperCharge 3, which is coming in late 2019 for the Mate X as a 55W Charger. So that is yet to be tested/verified)
50W – Oppo’s SuperVOOC (FindX Lamborghini)
0% – 10% (113 mAh per min) = 340mAh in 3 minutes
10% – 90% (136 mAh per min) = 2,720mAh in 20 minutes**
90% – 100% (38 mAh per min) = 340mAh in 9 minutes
Total Charge (~106 mAh per min) = 3,400 mAh in 32 minutes
…..aka SuperDash, to be announced on the OnePlus 7
40W – Huawei’s SuperCharge 2 (Mate 20 Pro)
0% – 10% (105 mAh per min) = 420mAh in 4 minutes
10% – 90% (93 mAh per min) = 3,360mAh in 36 minutes**
90% – 100% (17 mAh per min) = 420mAh in 25 minutes
Total Charge (~65 mAh per min) = 4,200 mAh in 65 minutes
20W – OnePlus’ Dash (OnePlus 6)
0% – 10% (66 mAh per min) = 330mAh in 5 minutes
10% – 90% (46 mAh per min) = 2,640mAh in 58 minutes**
90% – 100% (18 mAh per min) = 330mAh in 18 minutes
Total Charge (~41 mAh per min) = 3,300 mAh in 81 minutes
…..aka Oppo’s VOOC, also seen on the Oppo R11
18W – Samsung Adaptive Charger (S10 Plus)
0% – 10% (68 mAh per min) = 410mAh in 6 minutes
10% – 90% (47 mAh per min) = 3,280mAh in 70 minutes**
90% – 100% (12 mAh per min) = 410mAh in 35 minutes
Total Charge (~37 mAh per min) = 4,100 mAh in 111 minutes
15W – Generic Fast Charger (Moto G7)
0% – 10% (37 mAh per min) = 300mAh in 8 minutes
10% – 90% (36 mAh per min) = 2,400mAh in 67 minutes**
90% – 100% (8.1 mAh per min) = 300mAh in 37 minutes
Total Charge (~26 mAh per min) = 3,000 mAh in 112 minutes
5W – Apple Charger (iPhone XS Max)
0% – 10% (16 mAh per min) = 317mAh in 19 minutes
10% – 90% (17 mAh per min) = 2,540mAh in 151 minutes**
90% – 100% (10 mAh per min) = 317mAh in 31 minutes
Total Charge (~16 mAh per min) = 3,174 mAh in 201 minutes
30W – Apple Fast Charger USB-C (iPhone XS Max)
0% – 10% (63 mAh per min) = 317mAh in 5 minutes
10% – 90% (49 mAh per min) = 2,540mAh in 52 minutes**
90% – 100% (14 mAh per min) = 317mAh in 22 minutes
Total Charge (~40 mAh per min) = 3,174 mAh in 79 minutes
(charger sold separately, cable sold separately, total kit is expensive)
**this is the important part here
***mAh calculated at 3.8V, as per standard phone voltage (should’ve used Wh, but most people are used to that metric).
It’s nice that they can charge so fast, but how does it affect battery degradation? Not only do Li-ion batteries have a limited number of charge cycles; but the number of cycles they can endure decreases with fast-charging! (Other factors that reduce life expectancy include filling up to 100% often, letting it go to empty often, and charging when too hot or too cold.) https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries
This is definitely a specialized battery in the video. 20V and over 4A input power is more than what laptops charge at. Even at high efficiency, the heat created is still significant.
Huawei’s Mate 20 can fully charge a 4200mah battery in less than 60min (70% in 30min). I thought that was pretty insane, but Xioami just doubled down.
It’s definitely impressive, but how long can it withstand that sort of abuse? That’s my question.
Not very long. But it doesn’t matter, you’ll be buying a new phone in a year. Gone are the days of removable and replaceable battery phone with unlocked bootloaders.
Well, it may also be a hazard. Xiaomi the battery fire! (Show me). And not just during charge, during discharge on your flight, bus, car, home, whatever, there simply isnt a good place for a lithium fire.
I’m just as skeptical as you, but the prospects of such charging performance is phenomenal.
Basically it now takes you 10 MINUTES to charge your phone!
This performance is identical to Intel ThunderBolt 3 / USB-C PowerDelivery Maximum schematics.
I would give up Wireless Charging, and Portable Power Bricks for such Charging Performance. This means the phone can be charged much faster than it can be discharged, something that was thought to be impossible a year ago. And it alleviates battery life concerns, if this can be achieved from other charging sources like a running car or a large power brick. Basically, you can FINALLY say good bye to removable batteries (if the device is easy to service). Samsung Note4 and LG V20 owners can rejoice!!!