Qi2 test revelations: iPhone charges faster with the competition
9.12.2025
Translation: Patrik Stainbrook
Pictures: Lorenz Keller
Chaos, not consistency: Qi2 devices are delivering wildly different performances. One particularly absurd find: the iPhone charges faster with Google’s charger than the Pixel itself.
Placing the iPhone on a charging puck, I quickly raise my eyebrows. Turns out the wireless chargers from competitor Google and third-party manufacturer Aukey power it up quicker than Apple’s own device. Still, as I found out in my test, the Android competition can’t rejoice quite yet. The Google Pixel 10 XL charges more slowly on the similarly named Pixel charger than the iPhone. All this despite the fact that the wireless charging standard should really be, well, standardised.
Despite the identical Qi standard, my comparison reveals that charging performance varies greatly depending on the smartphone and charger. Total chaos for us users.
Charging speed – totally arbitrary
Since there’s no way of directly displaying how much power is flowing into smartphones on-screen, I measured the output power of every charger. I use a multimeter and, for added accuracy, a Sharge power bank, which also displays the power draw itself. My results were consistent across the board.
Bear in mind, some power is always lost. The test also shows that a charging process is anything but linear. Wattage rises first and only reaches its peak after a few minutes. At each stage, performance also fluctuates by the second.
The graph below shows the peak values I measured in watts, which are all surprisingly different. Every charger states which standard they support and what the maximum output is according to the manufacturer.
Seriously speedy chargers
Apple Magsafe Charger Qi 15 W: With an iPhone, Apple’s «old» charging puck draws 19 watts and delivers (ignoring loss) the specified 15 watts at least. A Pixel, on the other hand, charges much slower.
Apple Magsafe Charger Qi2 25 W: This «new» charging puck is faster – but not that much compared to expectations. I only measured slightly higher values using an iPhone. Above all, there are other devices that deliver power even quicker.
Google Pixelsnap Charger Qi2 25 W: Google’s charger comes with or without a stand. I got my best peak value of 31 watts using an iPhone. As a result, it’s disappointing that the Pixel smartphone only achieves a power output of around 20 watts. Despite promising 25 watts, this charger can’t get there.
Belkin Boost Charge Pro Qi2 15 W: The third-party manufacturer’s magnetic charging station is Qi2-certified, but limited to 15 watts. With it, the iPhone draws 18 watts, the Pixel even 20. This probably comes very close to the promised 15 watts in both cases if you include loss of efficiency .
Aukey MagFusion 1x Qi2 25 W: This charger carries the latest Qi2 certification, promising 25 watts. The iPhone again achieves its peak value here: 31 watts. Disappointingly, the Android device doesn’t charge any faster here than with the weaker Belkin charger.
Oppo AirVooC Qi 50 W: As an experiment, I dug an old Oppo charger out of the archives. That model charges Oppo smartphones with up to 50 watts wirelessly – mind you, only devices that support the AirVooC standard. All others are also supplied with power thanks to Qi compatibility, but at a much lower level.
A messy standard
The primary problem in this comparison is the Qi standard itself. Under the normal Qi designation, smartphones charge at 5 to 7.5 watts. Some chargers support the Extended Power Profile (EPP), allowing up to 15 watts of Qi-certified power. Of course, only if both the charger and device support this.
Qi2 raised the standard to 15 watts across the board in 2023. And as of this year, Qi2 has also been available as a 25-watt standard. It’s really Qi2.2, but manufacturers usually put Qi2 25W on the packaging. Apple itself has now put three versions of its Magsafe charger to market. Only the latest one is fully compatible with Android.
To help you keep track, I’ve made a nice table:
It gets even more confusing: some Qi2 devices are compatible with magnetic mounts, but by no means all of them. Apple has incorporated magnet technology into its standard. Apple itself calls it Magsafe, Google calls it Pixelsnap. However, out of current models apart from iPhones, only the Google Pixel has magnets integrated directly into the back. Magnetic covers are available for most other Android phones.
Want even more confusion? Then allow smartphone manufacturers to say: «Hold my beer…» All four of Google’s latest Pixel 10 models support Qi2 with magnets, three of them up to 15 watts. Only the 10 Pro XL manages 25 watts. Apple does a little better: all iPhone 17 models support 25 watts. However, the iPhone Air, which launched at the same time, is limited to 20 watts. Yep, you read right: not 15 watts, not 25 watts – but a completely arbitrary 20 watts.
The right combo makes all the difference
The only benefit of the Qi standard is that every compatible smartphone will actually charge on every compatible charger. In the worst case with a paltry few watts, and it’ll take more than an hour to charge a phone from 0 to 50 per cent. But in the best-case scenario, you’ll get more than 20 watts of power, and the same phone will be charged halfway in twenty minutes.
But how do I find the best charger for my smartphone? Well, my comparison already shows that the iPhone is compatible with all chargers. Meanwhile, Qi2 chargers with a designated 25 watts from Google and Aukey performed best. The older Qi2 charger from Belkin with its 15 watts also met expectations. Magsafe chargers from Apple, on the other hand, only fully won me over with the iPhone.
Faster and hotter by cable
But how fast do devices actually recharge? I tried to find out with the iPhone. Using the new Magsafe puck, it takes one hour and five minutes for the battery level to rise from 20 to 80 per cent. Google’s charger only needs 54 minutes to achieve the same feat. So, not only does it actually deliver more power in watts, it also charges around 17 per cent faster.
But there’s a way you can do it even quicker. By simply plugging the iPhone into a fast charger, it’ll go from 20 to 80 per cent in 37 minutes.
Rumour has it that wireless chargers cause devices to suffer from heat stress. This couldn’t be confirmed in my test – quite the contrary. I measured 32.1 degrees on the back of the iPhone when charging using the Magsafe, and 35.2 degrees when charging by cable. Incidentally, the device only gets really warm when it has a lot to do. After five minutes of recording video at 4K resolution, my temperature measuring device displays 39.3 degrees.
Efficiency traded for comfort
The greatest strength of wireless charging technology is its convenience. You simply lay the smartphone down or dock it for charging. This becomes particularly convenient with a magnetic holder. It also minimises the risk of damaging your USB-C socket by frequently inserting and removing cables.
Modern charging docks also look nicer than simple cables lying around everywhere. The iPhone also switches to a special standby mode when placed on a magnetic holder in landscape format, displaying the time, weather, your photo album, news or stocks.
But lest I leave out the biggest drawback, cable charging still allows 85 to 95 per cent of the energy drawn to reach your smartphone battery. Wireless efficiency is way worse: studies approximate 60 to 80 per cent. This result was even lower on older Qi chargers.
Unfortunately, there’s still no reliable data on newer Qi2 devices with 25 watts. Efficiency is constantly improving, and magnets ensure that your smartphone will always be correctly positioned on the coil and optimally charged. Still, if you don’t want to waste power, use cables.
Verdict: convenient, but confusing
Wireless charging is useful, but manufacturers don’t make using it easy. Instead of relying on simple designations and clear standards, there’s still a great deal of confusion. For Qi chargers, you’ll find models that charge with five watts and others that support up to 15. Then there are Qi2 chargers, which also deliver 15 watts – and then there are newer variants offering 25 watts.
Apple consistently omits the Qi2 logo – it’s missing from both the packaging and the device itself. The certification is only mentioned on their website and in the product description in our shop. Even worse, I can only distinguish the old Magsafe charging puck from one of the new ones by the textile cable added to the latest models. The old one is made from plastic.
All this confusion is annoying. The already poor reputation of wireless charging is being further damaged – even though the technology behind it is getting better and more efficient. It’s a shame that manufacturers are missing out on an almost historic opportunity. I struggle to think of another example of Android and Apple managing to work together and develop common standards.
Lorenz Keller
Senior Editor
Lorenz.Keller@digitecgalaxus.chGadgets are my passion - whether you need them for the home office, for the household, for sport and pleasure or for the smart home. Or, of course, for the big hobby next to the family, namely fishing.
Peripherals
Follow topics and stay updated on your areas of interest
Smartphone
Follow topics and stay updated on your areas of interest
Guide
Practical solutions for everyday problems with technology, household hacks and much more.
Show allThese articles might also interest you
40 comments
later