It’s ironic, but we here at WIRED have long been fans of wireless charging. Not having to fumble with cables is nice! Most wireless charging devices these days follow the Qi (pronounced chee) standard, which has taken its time reaching ubiquity. (The user experience has not always been great.) The Wireless Power Consortium, which manages the charging protocol, announced the next-generation version called Qi2 in early 2023, and we’re finally starting to see devices supporting it. It promises perfect alignment, with the potential for accessories to bridge the Android and iPhone divide.
Sadly, Qi2 has not rolled out as quickly or widely as we expected this year. As of August 2024, there is only one Qi2-certified Android phone, the HMD Skyline (6/10, WIRED Review), and we were dismayed to find that it did not work with some older Qi chargers. Is Qi2 coming unstuck?
Updated August 2024: We added details on Qi2 adoption, clarification on the different certification options, and the unwelcome news that some Qi2 devices cannot charge with Qi chargers.
What Is Qi2?
Photograph: Simon Hill
Qi2 is the new open wireless charging standard from the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC), and it brings important upgrades over the original Qi standard. The headline is the Magnetic Power Profile (MPP), which is based on Apple’s MagSafe technology. (Apple was involved in developing the Qi2 standard.) This allows Qi2-branded devices to add a ring of magnets to ensure perfect alignment with chargers and allow for faster charging speeds.
There is another standard, the nonmagnetic wireless charging Extended Power Profile (EPP). This has led to some confusion. Per WPC’s Paul Golden, EPP refers to a device that complies with the specification, but it is not officially Qi2 and thus cannot use the logo or be referred to as a Qi2 device. Golden told WIRED in an email that such devices “would carry the Qi logo, not Qi2, and packaging and/or marketing materials have a required statement that the device does not contain magnets. Any device labeled Qi2 is MPP and must include magnets.”
Qi2 is also fully backward compatible, so you can charge an older Qi Android phone or MagSafe iPhone on a Qi2 charger. We have tested several, and this seems to hold true. We also expected any old Qi chargers to charge Qi2 devices, albeit at slower speeds, but it turns out that is not true. The HMD Skyline, for example, did not work with several old Qi chargers we tested, and it seems this may be par for the course. We will have to wait for more Qi2 phones to find out, but with heavyweights like Google and Samsung failing to adopt Qi2 in their latest flagships it might be awhile.
Benefits of Qi2
Photograph: Simon Hill
Wireless charging with Qi2 brings several improvements over the original Qi standard.