DealNTech Mobiles, PCs, and All Things Tech
Despite some leaks, the iPhone 14 series didn’t improve the charging speeds across the lineup much. The latest models support up to 27W of charging, which isn’t that fast if you follow the current industry standard.
The current charging speeds can take the phones from 0 to 50% in half an hour, but the remaining 50% charges slowly. Surprisingly enough, Apple’s first 50% of the charge is some of the fastest in the industry. This quick 50% top-up is fast enough for a lot of people. However, it’s painfully slow in emergencies and isn’t recent charging technology.
We already know that Apple doesn’t include a charger in the box. Citing environmental reasons, iPhones beginning with the 12 series no longer have chargers. You have to purchase the bricks separately. Fortunately, you can still use a third-party charger without any limitations.
However, Apple has to swap out the lightning port on all their iPhones for USB Type C. This is because of an EU mandate, which cites USB Type C as the standard port for most electronic gadgets. If Apple doesn’t comply with the law, they might not have permission to sell iPhones in the EU or receive hefty fines. Since the EU is a major market for Apple, they can’t afford to pull out, and they have to comply with the rules and switch to USB Type C.
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The switch to USB Type C
A lot of us saw the change coming. It began with Apple adopting USB C on the 2018 iPad Pro models. They have a completely new design, faster port, and better performance. Before this, the port was also on the 2015 MacBook (Retina Display).
The iPad Air 4 got USBC, too, then the 2021 iPad Mini also got the port, and the base 10th gen iPad came in later. The iPhone was next, with the entire iPad lineup moving to the standard port. Only the accessories remain, and they probably will move to USB C in 2023, too.
The primary benefit of USB C is that it’s compatible with many other devices and not just iPhones. The charging speeds and data transfer speeds are also much faster with this port. You can now use one charger for all your gadgets instead of carrying dongles and adapters.
Apple’s 3LD3 chip could limit charging speeds if you use a brick from other OEMs. It’s also responsible for encryption and security. This chip could draw a considerable amount of battery, explaining the bigger batteries on the upcoming iPhones.
iPhone 15 series will have 35W charging
Due to this switch to USB C, Apple is updating the charging speeds for the iPhone 15 models. A new leak claims that the iPhone 15 will support a maximum of 35W of “fast” charging, and that’s faster than the 27W and 20W current models have.
It’s not wild 100W charging tech, but it’s a step up. We don’t have concrete leaks on wireless charging speed improvements, but there is a chance it could get a bump this year or the next.
Apple’s official brick currently supports only 20W of power output, and that’s what most people buy. You can go a bit faster with compatible and safe third-party chargers. We expect new compact 35W bricks to launch alongside the iPhone 15 lineup, and people can take advantage of the faster charging speeds.
A possible reason why Apple doesn’t include 50W charging or faster is that iPhones don’t have vapor cooling or liquid cooling. They already heat up and stop charging at 80%, sometimes with just 20W of power in hot and humid areas.
It’s clear that Apple is now prioritizing the first 0% to 50%, and the 35W charging speed will probably make it even better. It’s currently 30min, and the new speed will take it to just 20min for a 50% top-up.
This is nowhere near other phones that fully charge in 30 minutes, but it’s a significant improvement and a welcome change from the 14 lineup. We don’t think 35W charging will massively impact the battery health, considering it’s not very high wattage.
Battery capacities
The iPhone 15 lineup is shaping up to be a major battery champion. The capacity for the iPhone 15 Pro is apparently 3650 mAh. That’s about 450 mAh more than the iPhone 14 Pro. The current 14 Pro Max has a 4323 mAh battery, but the 15 Pro Max could have up to 4852 mAh. Paired with the chip update, this will massively improve the battery of the iPhone 15 series.
We should get similar upgrades to the vanilla models as well. The standard iPhone 15 model is expected to have a 3,877 mAh battery, while the larger iPhone 15 Plus may pack an even bigger 4,912 mAh battery.
Apple could still circumvent this law despite the EU prohibiting limiting charging and transfer speeds. They might limit the charging speed of the iPhone 15 Pro models if you use third-party accessories that don’t have the MFI certification. The Made For iPhone certification ensures that the product is of high quality. However, Apple can exploit this and severely limit charging speeds.
There are rumors of Apple using a USB C Thunderbolt port for the iPhone 15 Pro and Max. It’s overkill and unnecessary to most people, but it’s not a bad addition. Also, it’s still unclear which brick Apple will use for the 35W charging. They have a dual 35W charging brick and a 30W MacBook Air charger. However, it’s too big and not portable for an Apple-style smartphone charger.
Here is a table summarizing the rumored battery capacity and charging speed of the iPhone 15 series:
| Products | Battery Capacity (Rumored) | Charging Speed (Rumored) |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone 15 | 3877 mAh | Upto 20W |
| iPhone 15 Plus | 4912 mAh | Upto 27W |
| iPhone 15 Pro | 3650 mAh | Upto 35W |
| iPhone 15 Pro Max | 4852 mAh | Upto 35W |
What else is new with the iPhone 15 series?
So far, we know about faster 35W charging and bigger batteries. We’ve mentioned a new chip for encryption and security and the switch to USB Type C. Other leaks say a titanium frame for durability improvements, but the phone’s weight is unclear.
The camera system for the Pro Max will allegedly get a 5X or 6X periscope camera, and we’ll get the new 3nm A17 Bionic SOC. The price could increase, considering this model has many upgrades and starts at 256GB of internal storage. The RAM is still mostly at 6GB. Finally, Apple could replace the mute switch with an action button that you can configure to do many functions.
