Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- The Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) and major tech giants (including Apple, Google, and Xiaomi) are developing a unified Qi 50W standard to succeed Qi2 25W.
- The hardware design parameters for the Qi 50W standard are said to be finalized, with an official release targeted for 2028.
- Driven by Xiaomi’s architecture, the Qi 50W open standard reportedly aims to break brand lock-ins, offering safe, high-speed wireless charging across different phone brands and third-party accessories.
Phone charging has arguably peaked on the wired front, but there’s plenty of room to grow for wireless charging. The Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) is laying the groundwork for the next leap in wireless charging, targeting a unified Qi 50W standard to take the reins from Qi2 25W in the future.
At a recent WPC Qi Off-cycle Meeting hosted at Xiaomi’s Beijing headquarters, tech giants including Apple, Google, HUAWEI, OPPO, and vivo gathered to align on the technical specifications and prototype testing for the upcoming high-power Qi 50W standard, as reported by IT Home.
The Qi 50W standard is currently under development, though its hardware design parameters are reportedly finalized. It is said to be officially released in 2028 if everything goes according to plan.
The report mentions that Xiaomi has been a key driver in the development of the Qi 50W standard, contributing elements from its own low-inductance, low-voltage, high-power wireless charging architecture. The low-inductance changes aim to reduce coil module losses and adapt to more flexible product designs and more complex overall device structures. The low-voltage changes help achieve a balance between safety, charging efficiency, thermal management, and system complexity.
One of the goals of the Qi 50W standard is also said to be cross-brand compatibility. While Chinese OEMs have spent years pushing proprietary wireless charging speeds beyond 50W, those speeds have historically been locked to first-party charging stands. By establishing an open, universal 50W standard, the industry hopes to provide safer thermal management, lower power loss, and a consistent high-speed charging experience across different brands and third-party accessories.
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