What is the difference between Qi, Qi2, and MagSafe wireless charging technologies?

Wireless charging is a relatively standard feature on phones these days. Virtually all flagships have wireless charging, most mid-range devices have it, and it’s only in the budget price ranges that you shouldn’t be too surprised if you don’t see it. It’s not exactly new either, having been available since the Samsung Galaxy S6.

Qi (pronounced “Chi”) wireless charging is a standard most of us have heard of, but did you know that Qi2 wireless charging also exists? You’ve probably heard of MagSafe, for Apple devices. How do all of these wireless charging standards differ? I’m here to help you find out.

The Qi standard was the pioneering standard for wireless charging

The Qi wireless charging standard was the first one we knew and loved. When wireless charging was still a relative novelty, most manufacturers clearly stated that devices supported “Qi wireless charging” rather than just “wireless charging.” At this point, it’s essentially the only option for manufacturers who aren’t looking for super-fast wireless charging (in which case they’ll have to switch to a proprietary standard or choose another).

The Qi standard allows for power delivery ranging from 5W to 15W. As a result, it’s not always guaranteed that it’ll be fast (at least when it comes to wireless charging), so it’s important to read the fine print of the charger or device you’re charging.

You should also make sure that your phone is positioned correctly in relation to the cradle or wireless charger to ensure optimal power transfer.

Qi2 is sometimes faster than Qi and provides magnetic power

Qi2 is the latest version of the Qi wireless charging standard, and it took a long time to develop. Qi2 introduces two major improvements over the original Qi standard, both of which are relatively significant.

The first one is that the Qi2 standard is locked at 15W, so whenever you see a Qi2 charger, you don’t need to check at what speed it charges because the power will always be 15W.

The second improvement is that it now supports magnetic alignment. This means that the charger and your Qi2-compatible device will have built-in magnets that will stick together and allow for a perfect charge every time. The only problem is that Qi2 isn’t very widely adopted yet, especially in the Android world where the HMD Skyline is the only option.

MagSafe is Apple’s patented wireless charging technology

Finally, MagSafe is very similar to Qi2, but it is a proprietary standard owned by Apple. It also provides up to 15W of power to charge devices as fast as the Qi and Qi2 standards.

The main thing that makes MagSafe what it is is the presence of magnets, which allow for a perfect fit between your smartphone and the charger every time. It simply snaps into place. This means you shouldn’t make the mistake of saying that a Qi2-enabled Android phone is MagSafe compatible just because they both have magnets.

MagSafe is also notable for officially supporting a wide range of MagSafe accessories, such as batteries, cases, power banks, pop sockets, and so on.