iPhone 12 Update: Apple Adds Qi2 Technology for Faster Charging

• Apple has secretly added support for Qi2 technology to the iPhone 12
• Thanks to it, it can be recharged with a power of up to 15 watts with certified chargers
• Support verified by tests of the MacWorld server editor

The iPhone 12 from 2020 brought a relatively significant, albeit unobtrusive, innovation – the MagSafe charging system. At the time, Apple jokingly supplemented the existing Qi wireless charging standard with a magnetic ring, eliminating the need to accurately center the phone on the charger. The Qi2 standard introduced last year by the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC), of which Apple is a member, is based on the same principle. It is therefore no surprise that both systems are mutually compatible, although in the case of iPhones it is necessary to unlock full Qi2 support by software.

iPhone 12 gets Qi2 support

The Qi2 charging system has two advantages compared to the first generation – in addition to the mentioned magnetic connection, it also brings a higher charging power, up to 15 watts. When the WPC group introduced the standard last January, Apple boasted that its iPhone 15s were the first phones ever to support it – whether you placed them on a MagSafe or Qi2 charger, they charged at the same rate.

iPhone 12 Pro with MagSafe charger

However, this was not the case with older iPhones – with the MagSafe system, they were charged with a power of 15 watts, but with Qi chargers (regardless of the generation) the maximum was 7.5 watts. As it later turned out, the performance was limited only by the software, which Apple solved with updates to the iOS system – in the December update, models from the iPhone 13 and 14 generations received Qi2 support, now the support is also coming to the iPhone 12 series.

While Apple boasted of unlocking the full potential of Qi2 on the iPhone 13 and 14, we haven’t received any official confirmation on the iPhone 12. This news was noticed by several fans only recently, although the support was apparently added three weeks ago in the iOS update to version 17.4. The MacWorld server subsequently verified Qi2 system support on the iPhone 12 with the Anker Qi2 MagGo charger. With its help, the iPhone 12 Pro Max was charged even faster than with the original Apple MagSafe Charger – to 30 percent in 33 minutes, to 50 percent in 64 minutes. For the basic iPhone 12, the times were practically comparable.

Support for Qi2 on iPhone 12 is also confirmed by Apple accessory manufacturer Belkin, which mentions iPhone 12 in the list of compatible devices with its own Qi2 charger. Paradoxically, Anker has a different approach to each charger – it mentions iPhone 12 support for the MagGo Qi2 charger, and excludes 12-inch iPhones for the MagGo 3-in-1 charging station.

So it is possible that three and a half year old phones “don’t like” the Qi2 standard from all chargers in the same way, and that’s why Apple prefers not to recognize it, even though it is apparently supported.

Author of the article

Jakub Karásek

A fan of mobile technology, convertibles and wireless charging, a fan of hard music and a lover of fast driving in go-karts, bikes and skis. Opponent of FUP, slow internet and overgrown smartphones.

2024-03-29 19:15:00
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