KGI: ‘All-Glass’ 2017 IPhone Will Be Requirement For Wireless Charging, May Not Come In The Box
Well known Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI Securities reports that the 2017 iPhone will add wireless charging for the first time. Kuo believes we will be getting a charging setup similar to the Apple Watch.
Many Android phones support wireless charging with plastic and metal chassis, but the 2017 iPhone will switch to an all glass casing which would allow the iPhone to charge at fast speeds with minimum frequency interference.
However, Kuo also says that Apple will not bundle a wireless charger into every model — likely keeping it for the more expensive, higher-capacity SKUs — but expects the company to fully adopt the tech in 2018.
Nothing is concrete at this point, but users who purchase lower end models may end up needing to purchase a separate accessory in order to charge their iPhone wirelessly.
The term wireless charging is a bit of a confusing one. Wireless charging in the market today requires devices to be close to some sort of charging pad that is connected via a wire to the wall. This sort of charging should be called inductive charging.
Earlier this year, Bloomberg said Apple is working on long-range wireless charging for future iPhones, fulfilling the promise of charging wirelessly at a distant, alleviating the need for such a pad, though this report does seem to indicate that Apple is going for the former rather than the latter.