Now that we are done with the 3 most popular wireless charging standards, it is time to talk about what you will need to charge devices wirelessly. In this guide I'm going to cover charging smartphones. So if you have any other device in mind then you will need to wait a little longer for a guide on that. Ok the first thing you will need to do is check if your smartphone already has wireless charging built inside it. This matters because if that is the case then your device will only work with the wireless charging standard it is meant for. You can check below for a list of smartphones that have the Qi standard built inside. Smartphones With Qi Built-in
If your smartphone doesn't come with wireless charging then you will need a receiver. And this is where you have to choose between Qi and PMA. With Qi you have a good selection of different wireless chargers to choose from. On the other hand with PMA you can charge at Starbucks. However it seems that the Qi standard is winning as even Apple has added it to their newest iPhone models. So going with Qi is probably the best choice but it's up to you. After picking your standard, you can then choose a wireless charging pad. Finding a good charger is not an easy task. The reason is that there are just so many different products now. To be fair it also depends on which standard you have planned to go with. For example there are thousands of different wireless chargers for the Qi standard. PMA however only has like 2-3 at the moment and they are extremely hard to find. Mostly because of the insane amount of different Qi chargers available. So as you see finding the best wireless charger isn't exactly an easy task. You can check different review websites such as Tenpire, who have put together a list of the most popular chargers at https://tenpire.com/best-wireless-chargers/. They have reviewed quite a large amount of different wireless chargers in different categories and price ranges. Most of the chargers there are for Qi standard but there are also some for PMA. You can also just google for other websites such as them. There are hundreds of articles a like available for everyone and different tastes. I have put together my own list of some of my favorite wireless chargers as well. Best Wireless Charger For Qi
Best Wireless Charger For PMA
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Wireless charging, also known as inductive charging, allows a device such as a smartphone to be charged without the need to connect it directly to a power outlet. Instead the smartphone is placed on an inductive charging transmitter which provides power through the use of electromagnetism. Whilst not a new technology, wireless charging has increased in popularity recently primarily as a result of it’s implementation in flagship smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 edge. In order to help you better understand the potential of wireless charging, we have put together a list of Frequently Asked Questions below. What are the benefits of wireless charging?The main advantage of charging a smartphone wirelessly is convenience. Wireless charging allows smartphone users to keep their device topped up without having to worry about plugging it in each time they want to charge it. This saves time and money – particularly if the cable supplied with your phone is fiddly to use or prone to breaking. Another benefit of using wireless charging is how it looks. Often, power cables are bland and unattractive whereas there are hundreds of wireless chargers currently on the market, each with their own style and unique design elements. Furthermore, wireless chargers are increasingly being integrated into everyday objects such as alarm clocks, desk lamps and bedside tables which means there is a wireless charger to suit all tastes! Can all phones be charged wirelessly?In order for a smartphone to be charged wirelessly, it must have a receiver coil. Many newer smartphones have one already built-in. To check if your phone is compatible, please see our compatibility guide. Older phones may still be able to make use of wireless charging if fitted with an aftermarket receiver coil. Typically, these fit underneath the back cover of your smartphone near the battery and function the same as a built-in receiver. Will any wireless charger work with my smartphone?Unfortunately not. At present there are a trinity of wireless charging standards. The first of which is known as the Wireless Power Consortium or Qi (pronounced ‘chee’ after the Chinese word for ‘energy flow’) and is widely regarded as the most likely standard to achieve universal adoption in consumer electonics as a result of it’s already significant backing from a number of large technology companies such as LG and Nokia. Secondly, is the Power Matters Alliance (Powermat) which launched in 2012 and counts on early adopters such as the US communications company AT&T as well as the Startbucks Coffee chain. Finally, the third wireless charging standard is known as A4WP which has incorporated a completely different technological solution to the two previously mentioned standards and has a stronger focus on providing products for more commercial applications.
For more information about which standard your mobile device supports, please visit your phone’s manufacturers website. Okay so we have gotten through both the Qi and PMA wireless charging standards. As you noticed, they are mostly only meant for charging small devices such as smartphones. Yes Qi does have different specifications coming out but they aren't as talked about yet. So now it is time to write about the 3rd most popular wireless charging standard called the Rezence. What is Rezence?Rezence is a standard developed Alliance For Wireless Power (A4WP) for transferring wireless power. When Qi and PMA was based on inductive power transfer then Rezence uses the principles of magnetic resonance. Rezence is able to generate up to 50W of power and that up to a 5cm distance. It consists of a power transmitter and power receiver. So basically same idea as the other wireless standards. However besides just generating way more power, it also uses a frequency that allows to charge up to 8 devices at the same time. The main idea of Rezence isn't just to power your smartphone. It is created for charging bigger devices such as laptops. For example Intel came out with a pretty big wireless charging area that did that as well. In the future we could see desks which entire surface is a huge wireless charging pad. So anything you place on your desk it starts charging. Alliance For Wireless PowerAs I mentioned before, the Rezence wireless charging standard is developed by an organisation called Alliance For Wireless Power (A4WP). A4WP consists of companies such as Intel, Broadcom, Gill Electronics, Qualcomm, WiTricity, Samsung Electronics.
In 2015 however A4WP decided to merge with Power Matters Alliance (PMA) and they formed AirFuel Alliance. So now both Rezence and PMA belong to the same Alliance and are being developed under it. The 2 standards are still being developed separately by different companies as they are still too different, which sadly makes it impossible for them to work together. PMA is the second most popular wireless charging standard that is being developed by an organization called the Power Matters Alliance, now also known as AirFuel Alliance. The main problem with different standards such as PMA and Qi is that they don't work with each other. So if you have a PMA compatible smartphone then forget charging it with a Qi charging pad. Power Matters Alliance / AirFuel AlliancePower Matters Alliance, also known as PMA, is an organization/alliance that consists of various companies who all push the wireless charging standard called the PMA. In a sense it is the same as the Wireless Power Consortium, just different standard and different companies. Some of the companies behind PMA are Starbucks, Energy Star, AT&T, Flextronics, Duracell, Powermat Technologies and Federal Communications Commission. In 2015 Power Matters Alliance (PMA) and Alliance For Wireless Power (A4WP) decided to merge and the new organization is now called AirFuel Alliance. Under AirFuel Alliance, both the PMA and Rezence wireless standards are being developed. Technically Power Matters Alliance doesn't exist anymore but the 2 standards are still being developed separately inside AirFuel. What is PMA?PMA wireless charging standard uses electromagnetic induction between coils in order to create electrical energy. Inside your wireless charger there is a coil that is called "inductive charger". Inside a receiver there is another coil that is also called "inductive receiver". The "inductive chargers" coil creates an alternating electromagnetic field. The "inductive receiver" turns the power from the electromagnetic field into electrical current. It is basically the same technology that Qi uses but PMA operates at a different frequency so they aren't compatible with each other. Another difference between those two is that with PMA, the company offering it can track information. For example PMA wireless charging stations at Starbucks allows them to track how long someone has been charging for. Duracell Powermat and Power RingAt the moment there is only one company that has created PMA chargers and that is Duracell. They have different chargers available at a really good price. The only problem is that most smartphones don't have a wireless receiver built inside them so you are going to need an external one. For example a PMA wireless charging case that is also available on Duracells website.
A better alternative in my opinion is the Duracell Power Ring. It is a small attachable PMA wireless receiver ring that is also used in Starbucks. You simply plug it into your smartphones port and place it over your charger. PS! Power Rings only work with the PMA3 standard which is an upgraded version of the PMA. So if you wish to use the Power Rings at home then purchase the Duracell PMA3 Powermat. It is a little bit pricier than the original PMA Powermat but on the plus side, you won't need to mess around with the expensive charging cases that don't fit every phone. The main problem with the wireless charging world is that there are way too many wireless charging standards. Luckily however one standard has managed to peak and that is Qi - the worlds most popular wireless charging standard. WPC - Wireless Power ConsortiumWireless Power Consortium, also known as WPC, was established in 2008 and they are the force behind the Qi standard. WPC consists of different manufacturing companies who are all part of the standards development. That includes companies such as Asus, LG Electronics, Nokia, Motorola Mobility, HTC, Huawei, Samsung, Sony and BlackBerry. As you can see from the list, it is full of big electronics companies. This is one reason why Qi is the most popular wireless charging standard. Qi wireless charging standardThere are 3 different specifications of the Qi standard: Low Power, Medium Power and High Power. The most popular spec is "Low Power" that is also used for charging smartphones. Charging pads and receivers with that specification can deliver power up to 5W. The maximum distance between your wireless charging pad and smartphone is usually 5mm. The problem with Low Power is that 5W simply isn't enough anymore. That is why Qi recently announced that they have developed a new specification that can produce 15W of power. That can actually charge your device faster than a wall outlet. Medium Power specification can deliver power up to 120W and that is more than enough to power devices such as laptops. The High Power specification was announced in 2015 by WPC and it can deliver up to 1KW of power. That is crazy as it can pretty much power everything in your home. The Medium and High power specifications aren't widely spread yet. How does Qi work?The Qi wireless charging standard basically works with planar coils that creates an electromagnetic induction between them. The system consists of two basic modules: base station, also known as charging pad that gives the inductive power, and a receiver. A base station/charging pad has a power transmitter that consists of either one or multiple transmitting coils. The coil generates an oscillating magnetic field. A receiver contains a coil as well. Once those coils are moved close enough, an alternating current is created in the receiving coil by the magnetic field. The closer the two coils are the more efficient power transfer is. There are two types of Qi wireless charging pads: guided positioning and free positioning. With guided positioning there is a certain spot where you have to move your smartphone/receiver to in order to charge it. That is usually what we call single coiled pads. With free positioning you can basically put your device anywhere on the charging pad and it will start charging. Those kind of pads usually have 3 coils. Devices compatible with QiWith built-in wireless
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