Update 05/25/23: ChargerLab has “received word from the industry” that the iPhone 15 will support the Qi2 standard. The article below was originally published on 05/24/23.
Currently, if you want to use fast charging with your iPhone, the charger must be MagSafe certified. But according to a leak by yeux1122, the chargers don’t need to be MagSafe certified to fast charge the upcoming iPhone 15.
The reason for this is the new Qi2 (pronounced “chi-two”) open standard developed by the Wireless Power Consortium, which includes a new magnetic power profile based on Apple’s MagSafe. Apple is a member of the WPC and has contributed to Qi2 to make sure the magnetic connection is properly aligned for efficient charging.
The WPC announced Qi2 back in January and the first Qi2 products are expected to arrive later this year. In other words, the timing corresponds to the launch of the iPhone 15 in the fall.
Qi, the predecessor of Qi2, supported 15W charging, but Apple limits charging to 7.5W unless the charger is MagSafe certified. Many products are labeled as “MagSafe compatible”, but this is not an actual certification, so these products are limited to 7.5W.
After the Qi2 announcement earlier this year, we thought it was likely to happen, and yeux1122’s claim is plausible. This is good news for consumers as Qi2 is the standard for both iPhone and Android, leading to more choices in fast chargers. But if you’re currently looking for a MagSafe charger, we have a few recommendations.