Apple has reportedly bestowed a surprise charging upgrade on iPhone 12 owners in the form of faster wireless charging over the new Qi2 protocol.
This month’s iOS 17.4 update now enables iPhone 12 owners to replenish their phones at 15W when using Qi2 compatible chargers.
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Previously, only Apple’s official MagSafe chargers were able to provide iPhone 12 owners with the maximum allotted charging speed of 15W. Third-party options maxed out at 7.5W.
However, the update spotted by MacWorld but not publicised by Apple as yet, puts the iPhone 12 on a par with the iPhone 15, iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 ranges. The latter two models got the update with iOS 17.2 in December, while the support came as standard with the iPhone 15.
MacWorld’s tests showed comparable and, in some aspects, better performance with a new Qi2 charger versus the MagSafe option.
“Since iOS 17.4, Macworld tests have shown that clamped on to Qi2 chargers the iPhone 12 matches the charging speed of fully Apple-certified MagSafe chargers and even shows up the 15W-only charging animation.
“In our tests, we first used an Apple MagSafe Charger, which was able to power up an empty iPhone 12 Pro Max to 30 percent in 38 minutes and to 50 percent in 70 minutes. Using the Anker Qi2 MagGo Wireless Charger, we powered up an iPhone 12 Pro Max to 30 percent in 33 minutes and to 50 percent in 64 minutes.”
MacWorld
The iPhone 12 was released in 2020 and was the first iPhone ever to support the new MagSafe for mobile magnetic coil charging. iPhones dating back to the iPhone X had supported wireless chargers, but MagSafe was Apple’s more refined first-party entry.
Qi2 essentially replicates MagSafe’s functionality, so it was just a case of Apple turning on the feature, which the company has now, apparently, done.
