[Tech] - Wireless Charging : All You Need To Know..

Wireless Charging is just what it sounds like — a way to charge your phone, tablet or other device without using any wires. Wireless charging is a simple as placing your device on a charging pad and letting the magic happen. The charger itself is of course connected to a power source, but your device doesn't have to be physically plugged in. 

                     

It took over a century for the technology to find its way into the mainstream, but over the past few years wireless charging has finally emerged onto the consumer electronics market.

Some smartphones and smartphone accessories now have wireless charging capabilities built-in, and the technology is being integrated into all sorts of devices, appliances, public spaces and even vehicles, as companies look to make power cords obsolete.

Most of these commercial products use the magnetic-inductive method of charging, which involves coupling a device to a physical dock. If you have ever used an electric toothbrush or shaver, for example, then you may be familiar with this type of inductive charging.

The technology requires two coils: a transmitter and a receiver. An alternating current is passed through the transmitter, generating a magnetic field. This in turn induces a voltage in the receiver, which can be used to power a mobile device or charge a battery.

Apart from the obvious benefit of removing the need for power cords, wireless charging has the advantage of being more durable (there is significantly less wear and tear) and more eco-friendly (there is no electronic waste, and energy transfer is non-radiative).

However, there are also some disadvantages to wireless charging. For example, it can be slower, less efficient and more expensive than traditional wired charging – although newer approaches reduce transfer losses and improve speed through the use of ultra thin coils and higher frequencies.

One of the goals of the consumer electronics industry is to provide consumers with the ability to use one wireless charging dock that is compatible with all the devices they already own, as well as all the devices they buy in the future.

It is expected that 2015 will be a landmark year for the growth of wireless charging, as the technology begins to appear in more and more public places. As MWC kicks off in Barcelona tomorrow, watch out for many more announcements in this space.

A quick video to show you how this works: