Chances are that you, like most of us, are tired of all your charging cables being so flimsy and breaking so easily and often. It’s just too much to be carrying around so many different cables for all of the devices we have access to these days.
Apple’s announcement of their AirPod 2 wireless charging feature just goes to show that the consumer market is ripe and ready for new options which increase ease and speed up the day in this fast-paced world. Apple could be said to be the the original culprit for pushing the entire industry into a myriad of charger confusion, having to buy dongles, adapters and all sorts but as occurs in any industry the consumer always gets their way.
So let’s dive head first and into the world of “wireless” charging.
A Demand for a Cleaner Charging Experience
The main issue with chargers today is that there are too many of them. How annoying it is to need 3 different charging cables to charge devices from the same manufacturer.
The micro-USB was once the universal standard for charging small devices. Blackberry, Nokia, Samsung, iPhone, you name it – they used this charger.
At this point, can we really call for a universal charger, 2.5mm (headphone) jack and expect innovators to go back to that on their latest device? No. Wireless seems to be our only real solution at this point. And if it is, why go backwards when we can jump ahead.
Innovators in the charging industry seem to focus on the following key qualities:
Portability – Compact, light and easy to carry in a small bag.
Rapid Charging – Depending on the device you need to charge, consumers are looking for speed. Charging options should include different wattage for different devices. Rapid charging is a challenge of chemistry and physics integrated into all elements of a charger.
Magnetic – Gone are the days where a slight motion interrupts and disconnects your charging cord. Magnetic chargers are now an industry standard
Multi-compatibility – Ever bought a cheap charger or cable from Amazon and found your phone or tablet doesn’t even recognize there is a connection? Multi-device compatibility requires chargers to have minimum structure requirements or “smart device” intelligence to allow for compatibility.
Within the charging industry there is a term called Qi (pronounced “Chee”). This universal standard for wireless charging technology developed in 2008 and introduced wireless (inductive) charging capability. Today, manufacturers all over the world are working with this standard to offer wireless charging in their latest wireless devices including the new Samsung and Apple flagship phones.
Samsungs’s Wireless Charger Duo for example can charge up to two devices at a time and comes with a USB-C cable and built-in cooling tests on the iPhone XS Max and Galaxy S9 showed the devices did not get significantly warm even during fast charging.
For most Apple device users, the offerings of late are disappointing. Apple announced a wireless charger called AirPower which seems to have recently been pulled from the lineup. Apple’s website instead has Belkin wireless pads so seem to have conceited in the rapid wireless endeavor – for now.
Back to square one, in 2019 you have to buy multiple chargers for your devices or succumb to a pileup of cables cluttering up your home or office counters. Wireless phones are here and so are wireless wearables and tablets. How is all this available for our devices yet we’re still using such analogue products?
MAGFAST Review
Digging around in the wireless charging space I discovered an interesting crowdfunded startup called MAGFAST. It began as a startup in 2018 and its family of products is both magnetic and fast and is threatening to disrupt out charging experience MAGFAST. And that’s where the fun begins. The slogan is “changing charging for good.” And as the video on their homepage explains, the goal is to revolutionize the charging industry by finally delivering a truly wireless charging experience.
Checking in with Seymour Segnit, MAGFAST’s Founder and Inventor he said, “The idea of MAGFAST came about after countless hours trying to find the chargers I wanted for my own family.” He goes on to say, “I found that despite this being a critical part of everyday life – and despite there being thousands of chargers out there – no manufacturer seemed to ‘get’ what I was looking for.”
Simply put, the whole focus of these chargers is just what it says on the box – a fully wireless solution. No cords, no tangling, no wires at all. Each component connects directly to the others magnetically. And compatibility for most phones is built into each unit.
Need to charge a Google Pixel? Wait, how about your kids’ old iPhone 6 and perhaps your new Apple Watch. Oh and of course, you need to charge them all at the same time. Hold MAGFAST’s beer and watch it pump those things full of juice.
The MAGFAST Family Highlights
MAGFAST Wall: Two powerbanks and two devices on the left and the right.
MAGFAST Life Extreme: A small, portable supercharger which, per the company, provides enough power output even to jump start your car.
The MAGFAST Road: A USB charger that allows you to charge on the go.
The most elegant and simplest Qi charger has to be the MAGFAST Air. It’s a charging stand that can sit easily on desks or even snap magnetically right onto any of MAGFAST’s power banks.
According to their website, shipping begins late 2019.
The company is a crowdfunded startup so any one that joins as a supporter gets a free gift and they plant a tree as part of their campaign to make this a greener planet. The program is actually quite interesting.
Soon we can all live a truly wireless life.
This piece is sponsored.
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