With wireless charging, power is transferred via electromagnetic induction. Whereas traditional charging requires the power to pass through a cable, with inductive charging the device receives the necessary power through electromagnetic fields. This eradicates the need for wires. All you need is a Qi certified phone and a Qi certified charging station. It’s rather like your electric toothbrush: when it runs out of power you place it in the docking station where it is charged wirelessly.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
About Wireless Charging
Wireless charging works by something which is called magnetic induction. In inductive charging systems, energy is transferred between coils by a magnetic field via inductive coupling. Read more on how wireless charging works.
You sit down for a cup of coffee and place your smartphone on the table. The phone lights up and starts to charge automatically – without connectors or cables. Just grab your phone on your way out in the morning, and charge it wherever you need to – at home, the office, the library, on the train, in your car or at the local café. As wireless charging becomes more and more mainstream, wireless charging hotspots will soon be available everywhere.
It’s all about power. A 5W wireless charging system can deliver up to 5W of power to the battery of your phone. This is like a 5V/1A USB outlet and therefore it’s just as fast as wired charging. In general, it depends on the amount of power delivered to the phone. With cabled charging, the amount of power is dependent on the type and power rating of the adapter in combination with the capabilities of the phone. For wireless charging it is actually the same; a 15W charger has the capabilities to charge your phone faster than a 5W charger, but this also depends on the amount of power your phone can handle.
Some phones and wireless chargers support fast charging. With fast wireless charging, the battery is simply charged faster by increasing the charging power. This results in shorter charging times.
Wireless Charging Safety
Wireless charging systems must obey a set of rules and regulations related to electromagnetic interference (EMI/EMC), sometimes also called “radio disturbance”, and magnetic fields. All ZENS products meet these rules and regulations. So, is wireless power safe? Yes, all kinds of precautions have been taken to make sure that it is.
No. It’s normal for your phone to get slightly warm when charging wirelessly, so this is nothing to worry about. All ZENS products have passed appropriate safety tests. When using a regular plug-in charger, you’ll notice that the charger warms up a little. It’s the same with wireless charging.
The charger does not start charging. The transmitter of a wireless charging system can detect if a piece of metal is located on its surface (foreign object detection). In this case, the transmitter either does not start charging at all or it stops charging.
Wireless Power Consortium and Qi Standard
The Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) is a group of leading companies that cooperate in continuously defining, maintaining and developing the Qi standard for wireless charging.
Qi (pronounced: ‘’chee’’) is a global standard like Bluetooth, NFC, USB and WIFI. Its name comes from the Asian philosophy and means ‘’vital energy’’; an intangible flow of power. The idea behind Qi is simple: all devices with the Qi logo will be compatible with all Qi chargers. No need for separate chargers or cables and no need for adapters when traveling.
Products using the Qi standard must be tested rigorously to help ensure safety, interoperability and energy efficiency. Only products that have passed these independent laboratory tests can use the Qi logo and are considered “Qi-certified”.
Yes. ZENS is a proud member of the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) since 2011 and all ZENS wireless chargers are Qi-certified.
It might be. Wireless chargers must obey several safety measures. Wireless chargers that are not Qi-certified may not have implemented all mandatory and necessary safety features. As such, they may get hot and damage phones or other products placed on the charger. For example, a metal coin might, if the detection metal objects does not work properly, get very hot and even cause skin burn.
Using a Wireless Charger
Place your phone face-up on the wireless charger. For optimal performance, make sure it is placed in the middle of the charger.
Yes, ZENS has developed wireless chargers for both individual and shared (dual chargers) use. Depending on the model, you can wirelessly charge one or two phones at the same time by placing them next to each other on the dual charging pad.
If your device is charging, the charging symbol appears on the screen of your device. Some ZENS wireless chargers have a LED light that also indicates that your phone is being charged.
Yes, you do not need to remove your case before charging. All ZENS wireless chargers work with most lightweight cases. Just to be sure, it is recommended to take phone cases with metal lining off before charging.
If your ZENS wireless charger does not work properly, first check the user manual supplied with the product. If this does not help, you can contact the store at which you bought it or contact us.
Device Compatibility
Find out if your smartphone is or can be made compatible with the Qi standard by viewing our list of all phones with wireless charging.
It depends. To wirelessly charge a phone that does not have wireless charging, you need a case for your phone that supports wireless charging. Attach the Qi wireless charging phone case and wireless charging is enabled for your phone.
Yes. The iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X can be charged wirelessly according to the Qi standard. Earlier models of the Apple iPhone do not support wireless charging. ZENS developed several wireless charging cases that enable iOS devices to be charged with Qi wireless charging technology. Find out if your Apple iPhone is or can be made compatible with the Qi standard by viewing all phones with wireless charging.
Yes. The Samsung Galaxy S9, Samsung Galaxy S8, Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S6 series, Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Samsung Gear S Smartwatch series are all Qi certified. For Samsung models that don’t have the Qi technology integrated, ZENS has developed several wireless charging cases and wireless charging flip cases. Find out if your Samsung device is compatible with the Qi standard by viewing all phones with wireless charging.
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