HUAWEI Mate 20 could set new standard for super fast wireless charging

Huawei’s upcoming Mate 20 flagship is expected to launch in October and will likely bring the features of the P20 Pro camera in a bigger and better way. One of the ways HUAWEI may look to differentiate its devices is through wireless charging, with a new leak suggesting the Mate 20 could offer the fastest wireless charging in smartphone history.

An image posted on Weibo shows a HUAWEI wireless charger with model number LZ80, which supports the Qi wireless charging standard. Most importantly however, the charger supports 20W output, which would set a new standard for wireless charging in smartphones.

The Samsung Wireless Charger Duo — which is new for 2018 — currently supports 9W output, while third-party chargers on the market offer up to 15W support. The HUAWEI wireless charger will be the first to support 20W, although we won’t know if the Mate 20 will be able to take full advantage of that output until we get an official announcement.

The Qi wireless charging standard only supports up to 15W so it’s unclear how HUAWEI will take full advantage of the 20W output. An easy assumption would be that, like the communication between phone and charger with SuperCharge, HUAWEI will deploy a custom chipset to increase the output. It’s also possible that this charger will support the Qi standard for anyone who wants to use it, but the Mate 20 (and presumably future phones) will use a custom wireless charging standard.

The Samsung Galaxy S9 family supports wireless charging at 9W, while the iPhone X and other devices support up to 7.5W. Other companies like UMI suggest they support up to 15W wireless charging, but these claims haven’t been verified.

How important is wireless charging to you? Is it a must-have for your smartphone purchase?