How Does Wireless Charging Work?

As phones and their accessories become sleeker, users are seeing the benefits of wireless charging.

Most flagship models will now facilitate wireless charging that makes boosting your phone’s battery as simple as placing it down on a surface.

Depending on the model and manufacturer, many reconditioned phones will also allow you to use wireless charging. For more information about our range of second-hand phones, please don’t hesitate to browse our collection.

What Is Wireless Charging?

For the uninitiated, wireless charging essentially just means the transfer of power from an outlet to your device without attaching a charging cable.

Usually, you will put your phone or device onto some kind of pad or receiver which enables charging. The pad itself will be plugged into a power source.

The Origins of Wireless Charging

Despite the images of modern-day smartphones that the term ‘wireless charging’ conjures up, the tech in question has actually existed since the nineteenth century.

Famous technological pioneer Nikola Tesla showed how magnetic fields between a transmitter and receiver could transmit electricity through the air.

At the time of its conception, wireless charging had little practical use.

Nowadays, this kind of technology is harnessed to make charging cable-free, whether this involves charging your phone, laptop, or even car.

How Does it Work?

This technology utilises inductive charging; an electromagnetic field is created by passing a current through two coils made of copper.

Capable smartphones will have an interior receiver induction coil while a wireless charger in the form of a pad or dock will contain a transmitter coil. When the two devices make contact, an electromagnetic field is generated; your phone’s receiver converts this into electricity to power its battery.

This charging will only work over short distances because the receiver and transmitter coils are very small.

Chargers do not have to be manufacturer specific; if your phone is wireless-compatible, it will work with any functional charger. You will not need a Samsung charger with a Samsung phone, for example.

Qi Charging

Many modern phone specs will include the addition of ‘Qi’ wireless charging, but what exactly does this refer to?

Qi is pronounced ‘chee’ and means ‘energy flow’ in Chinese. It is a standard for wireless charging that is adopted by prominent smartphone producers including Apple, Samsung, Sony, Huawei, Google and Nokia.

It works like other inductive charging technologies, but its rise in popularity has set it apart as the universal standard.

The Benefits of Wireless Charging

So you know how it works, but what’s so great about wireless charging?

• Fewer wires: this is always a positive as multiple cords can look messy and can become tangled.

• Safety: with fewer input points and wires, there is less chance of an electrical fault.

• Durability: less strain is also applied to your phone’s charging port, helping to keep it fully operational for when you do need a regular charger.

• Universal Compatibility: you don’t have to worry about having all the correct chargers for every device; you will be able to use one charging pad for all compatible devices.

Thinking of opting for a phone with wireless charging capabilities? Explore our range of quality reconditioned devices to see if we’ve got something to suit you!