Wireless mobile and cell phone chargers

Lets start with the basics. What do we mean when we talk about a wireless phone charger? Is it the charger that’s wireless? Or is it the action of charging which is wireless? It could be either. It depends whether we are talking about the future or what is available today. Currently we would mean that the action of charging is wireless. In other words we charge our cell phone by a different means than ‘plugging it in’. The wireless phone charger itself still requires a power source.

wireless charging cell phones have been available since 2012. Already there are public wireless charging points springing up across the country. The numbers of these will no doubt rise dramatically as sales of the phones increase.

 

How does a wireless phone charger work?

It uses inductive charging. In basic terms this involves using a magnetic field to create an electrical current in your phone. This current charges the battery.

However many wireless chargers will still use contact points. This is nothing new and has been used for many years for charging electrical devices.

Both methods rely on the phone being placed upon the charger. The inductive method has its advantages in that simple close proximity should be enough to charge. But this is likely to be slow and expensive in power usage.

 

 

Which is the best wireless phone charger?

This depends upon several factors:-

Inductive technology. As explained above, not all wireless chargers work using induction. How important is this to you?

Portability. If you intend to take it with you on a regular basis it needs to be small but durable. And do you need it to charge your phone away from a power source? There are currently few wireless cell phone chargers with internal batteries which can do this.

Compatibility. Don’t just think about the cell phone you use now. Do you change or upgrade regularly? Will this be an issue in the near future?

Items to charge. Some chargers will just charge your cell phone. Others can charge multiple devices simultaneously.

Functionality. Such as – charging time? Does it cut-off when charged? Will your phone stay put or slide off?

And obviously cost.

 

Don’t truly wireless cell phone chargers already exist?

Well ……. yes and no. Gadgets have been around a long while which will give a sudden power boost to your cell phone. Certainly enough to make that important call.

Thinking of the ‘Shake to Charge Battery’ app? IT’S A JOKE! Despite the countless people who blog that it doesn’t work. It was never meant to! It’s just an app that makes your phone appear to charge when you shake it. Fool your friends. Just don’t be fooled yourself!

Another gadget to create confusion is the charger belt. Did you think the same as me when you heard about it? “Wow – a belt which charges your phone while you wear it!”. No. A belt buckle which can be plugged into a socket to charge your phone. A very clever idea indeed. But not what we are discussing here.

There are of course solar phone chargers. But no-one is pretending that they could totally replace your conventional charger.

What should we expect from a future wireless phone charger?

The best we can hope for is a self charging cell phone. Maybe that’s charged by kinetic energy through movement. Apple are working on this with some success. Though they make no pretence that it will be available soon.

Currently in development are ‘charging areas’. So you walk into a room and your phone charges while you are in there. But this could be a while away yet ………..