The myths and benefits of wireless charging

EVER since Apple announced the wireless charging capabilities of the iphone X and iphone 8/8Plus in 2017, it’s become a muchtalked about (and almost expected) feature especially for all flagship smartphones. But Apple wasn’t actually the first to implement wireless charging (surprise!). Samsung introduced its first commercial wireless charger way back in 2011 for the Droid Charge followed by the wireless charging cover and mat for the Galaxy S4 in 2013, before making it a basic option for the Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge. Some even point to the Palm Pre (2009) as the first to have an optional wireless charging back cover.

As wireless charging becomes more popular, we are seeing more devices with embedded wireless charging features. Analysts say that it’s only a matter of time until we see charging ports go the way of the 3.5mm headphone jack and disappear from all mobile phones to allow for better water-proofing.

How many times did you answer a call on your mobile phone, forgetting it was still connected to a cabled charger, and you had to rip it off aggressively from the charger? Or how many times have you tripped on a cable or damaged the charging port of your phone because of the number of times you had to plug it in and out?

The foremost advantage of wireless charging is right there in the phrase—wireless. With wireless charging, you reduce the clutter of charging cables, limiting it to just the power cable of the charging pad. The lack of charging cables also eliminates that timeless problem of not having the right connectors. You don’t need to worry about not having a Lightning, USB-C, or micro USB cable on hand anymore. All Qisupporting devices will work on all Qi charging pads.

However, there are still people who have doubts about wireless charging, beliefs often from the old days when the standards weren’t quite as refined.

One myth is that wireless charging is slow. Yes, wireless charging indeed started out slow and this was probably true during the 5-watt “era”. But today, there are fast wireless charging pads that can provide 10 or even 15 watts of power.

The one I am currently using is the Moshi Otto Q ($39.95 on Amazon), a certified Qi wireless charging pad featuring optimized circuitry that can charge all your Qi enabled devices—from iphones, Apple Airpods, Samsung Galaxy and Note phones, Huawei Mate 30 Pro, etc. It supports fast charging up to 10W using a high-output USB-C wall charger and has been recognized as the “fastest wireless charger in the world” as tested by German Apple magazine Mac & I.

Another belief is that wireless charging is inefficient. The conversion from electric current to electromagnetic field and back doesn’t cause a significant loss in efficiency, and you can recover as much as 80 percent of the input wattage when wirelessly charging, though this may go down depending on whether you use a phone case, and how thick it is.

The Otto Q’s Q-coil module features a 2.6 mm ferrite sheet that charges your phone efficiently, even through cases up to 5 mm thick. I’ve tested it with several types of cases on my iphone 11 Pro Max and Samsung S20 Ultra and true enough, it didn’t affect or slow down charging.

Last, there’s the myth that wireless charging pads can damage the phone or its battery. Again, this is not entirely true—unless you are using a low-quality, generic wireless charger. Good quality charging pads are built to prevent damage to the phone while in use.

Rated as the “Best Wireless Charger Overall” in an article by Business Insider, the Otto Q even has foreign object detection, so wireless charging is disabled immediately if a metal object is detected, ensuring safety of your phone.

Inspired by Danish furniture, Otto Q acts as an “ottoman” that cradles your device as it charges wirelessly. The circular pad has a fancy “Nordic Gray” fabric that sets it apart from the all-plastic finishes of other charging pads, making it not only the fastest but also the most stylish wireless charger in the market.

It’s designed to cushion your phone with its soft material finish, and the silicone surface ring gives your phone some traction when sitting on the pad. It also has a similar non-slip silicon on its base to prevent it from slipping off your table.

Located on the front edge is a “smart” white LED. This LED indicator remains unlit until you place your phone on top. Once you place your phone on the pad, the LED will then begin to “breathe” to let you know that it’s charging. Once the phone is fully charged, this light will become steady. And when it detects a foreign/metal object on top, it will rapidly flash to alert you and will shut off to prevent heating.

As an added assurance of their product’s quality, Moshi is even offering a 10-year global warranty if you register your product at www.moshi.com/en/register. This is certainly quite interesting as tech companies usually don’t provide a warranty that’s longer than one or two years.

DYNAMIC DUO: REALME 6

AND REALME 6 PRO

IN the most recent Counterpoint Research Market Monitor service released last month, realme emerged as the fastest-growing smartphone brand both globally (157 percent year-on-year) and in the South East Asia market for the first quarter of 2020.

From aspiring to be the “game-changer” brand when it first entered the Philippine market in late 2019, it “dared to leap” and became the new lifestyle partner of the youth, recording a 173 percent YOY growth and continued to be in top 5 in the South East Asia smartphone market including Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia and the Philippines.

An impressive feat considering that the markets were down due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with an 11 percent decline in SEA and a 13 percent decrease in the global market over first quarter in 2019.

Within the first half of 2020, realme has already released five new smartphones in addition to several Aiot devices (realme Buds Air, realme band, and realme powerbank), helping the brand sustain its growth and provide a holistic experience in the form of a connected ecosystem to its tech-savvy young consumers. This month, realme will also be taking on a new market segment, as it is set to launch its very first flagship device in the Philippines—the realme X3 Superzoom and realme watch.

But for now, we’ll take a look at two of realme’s best-selling devices of the year so far: the realme 6 and realme 6 Pro.

(PAY) LESS FOR MORE: 90HZ GAMING WITH THE REALME 6

THE appointed successor to the realme 5 Pro, the realme 6 forefronts the brand’s mobile gaming strategy and was designed for the aspiring serious gamer. It is available in two configurations; the 4GB + 128GB priced at P11,990 and an 8GB + 128GB variant for P13,990.

The realme 6 is powered by a Mediatek Helio G90T flagship-class processor, ensuring smooth and lag-free gaming session for its users, complemented by a 6.5-inch 90Hz Ultra Smooth Display for a smooth visual experience. It also has a quad rear camera setup with a main 64MP shooter, 8MP Ultra Wide-angle Lens, 2MP B&W (portrait) and 2MP macro; 16MP selfie camera, and a 4300mah battery that supports 30W Flash Charge. It runs Android 10 out of the box and the new realme UI on top.

The realme 6 sports a more refined design compared to its predecessor. Inspired by the comet that splits the dark night sky, the design of realme

6 is definitely eyecatching. You can’t go wrong with either Comet Blue or Comet White, but it’s a bit of a shame that the free dark colored plastic case somehow conceals just how good it looks. The curved back ensures better handling and the power button doubles as a fingerprint scanner, which has actually become my favorite placement. It’s fast and very easy to reach.

Sporting a 6.5-inch IPS LCD display (with a punchhole for the selfie camera), the realme 6 is relatively large, but just the perfect size for gamers. The Full HD+ display has good brightness levels even when using it outdoors during the day. Colors are vibrant and viewing angles are superb. But the best part of the realme 6’s display is its 90Hz refresh rate—a feature you can only find on smartphones twice or even thrice its price. Its best seen with your own eyes, but it will definitely make your gaming sessions more immersive and scrolling through your social media feeds a lot smoother. This feature alone makes the realme 6 stand out from other phones at the same price point.

Keeping things and games running butterysmooth is a Mediatek Helio G90T processor—a chipset that’s designed for gaming. You won’t have any problems installing and playing any game you want even on medium to high settings. I’m using the 8GB RAM variant and I’ve had no problems or complaints as it could easily handle all my day-to-day apps and tasks. Whether it’s for work like updating my social media feed, editing photos/short videos, checking email, posting new stories on my blog, or when using it to watch Youtube videos or Netflix, the experience was always slick. I wouldn’t deny that it does heat up a bit during prolonged used but not to the point of making it uncomfortable and upsetting.

As for the cameras, the realme 6 does an OK job, but definitely better than the realme 6i. In daylight and good lighting, the realme 6 can capture beautiful photos with vibrant colors. There’s a good amount of detail and the exposures are quite good. I did have a bit of a problem with focusing on a subject up close, and there are times when I had to move back a bit so that the camera can refocus. Its also best to wait for a second before moving the camera to avoid blurry shots. The ultrawide-angle shots are also OK, though not as good as those taken by the primary camera sensor. Still, you get vibrant colors with good details. The front camera of the realme 6 can also capture nice-looking selfies in good lighting. It’s in low-light situations where the realme 6 cameras struggle a bit, which is not is not surprising for phones at its price point, and it’d be a good thing for you switch to an improved Night Mode to get better more detailed snaps.

The realme 6 has 4300mah battery that can easily last you a day of moderate usage with some gaming throughout, but what’s even better is that it supports 30W flash charge and you can charge it from zero percent to 100 percent in around an hour.

Once again, realme raises the standards for a mid-range smartphone with the realme 6. With all of the features we discussed, it is a relatively easy recommendation for those looking for a gaming phone with a premium design on a limited budget. You get a large clear display with a 90Hz refresh rate, reliable gaming performance, a versatile camera setup and a battery that could keep up with your gaming marathons. Get the 8GB + 128GB configuration for the best value. Next week, we check out the realme 6Pro. ■