battery: Explained: How does wireless charging work and the effect it has on phone’s battery

The convenience of wireless charging is rapidly making this tech a popular trend. Most consumers who are investing in flagship smartphones are also opting for wireless chargers or charging options. Yet, some people are still wary of adopting this tech, despite its convenience. Several users have taken to the internet to reveal their worries about the wireless charging tech damaging their device’s battery. Here we will discuss how the tech works and whether it is good for your device’s battery.
How does wireless charging work?
Modern smartphones use electromagnetic induction to transfer electric energy from the charger to the smartphone while wirelessly charging it. You need your smartphone to support wireless charging and a compatible wireless charger to use this tech. Both the phone and the charger need copper coils as well.
A fast changing magnetic field interacts with the copper coil present inside the smartphone when you put a compatible smartphone on a wireless charger The magnetic field then produces electric energy in an enclosed loop that interacts with that magnetic field using electromagnetic induction. The battery gets charged by the electric current that is produced.
This form of wireless charging is called tightly-coupled electromagnetic inductive charging. Two copper coils need to be placed in close proximity for this technology to function. The copper coils need to align for this type of wireless charging to work. There are other forms of wireless charging technologies that aim to solve this proximity issue.
Radio Frequency (RF)-based charging can charge gadgets wirelessly at a few feet distance, whereas loosely-coupled resonance charging can deliver a charge up to a few centimetres away. Users will be able to charge their phones without going near a charger in the near future using RF charging.
Does wireless charging affect your smartphone battery?
The common notion that wireless charging is bad for your smartphone is just a myth. Users point out that wireless charging generates more heat than wired charging, which makes them believe that wireless charging damages their smartphone’s battery.
Does wireless charging produce more heat than wired charging?
Your smartphone can tackle the heat that is produced during wireless charging. There is a reason for wireless charging producing more heat than conventional wired charging and can be deemed as one of its side effects. The heat generated by wireless charging can damage the smartphone if not managed properly.
However, wireless charging standards like Qi have strict guidelines to deal with such problems. Wireless chargers that qualify as Qi-certified regulate the charging speed to tackle the heat. When Qi-certified wireless chargers detect excessive heat it reduces the charging speeds.
Lower energy output generates lower heat which protects your phone from battery damage. On the other hand, wireless charging heats up the copper coil inside the phone and not the battery itself. So, wireless charging produces marginally more heat than wired charging, but it doesn’t pose a threat to your phone’s battery.
Wireless charging doesn’t affect battery charge cycles
Wireless charging also doesn’t affect battery charge cycles any more than regular wired charging. Battery charge cycles have nothing to do with the form of charging but the frequency of charging.
It doesn’t matter the charging tech that you are using, if you charge your phone multiple times a day, you will notice a substantial reduction in the battery charge cycles. So, to conclude, wireless charging won’t affect your phone’s battery if you don’t charge your phone multiple times in a day.
Wireless charging is less efficient than wired charging
Wireless charging is less efficient and more power-consuming than wired charging. Studies have found that wireless charging averagely uses 47 per cent more power than wired charging. The extra power consumption by a single wireless charger won’t significantly increase your energy bill, but all smartphone users in the world switching to wireless charging would have a critical impact on the environment.