Customers may have to wait until September 2018 to get Apple's AirPower wireless charging mat, reports Bloomberg.
Introduced in September of 2017, the AirPower mat was supposed to compliment the iPhone X and iPhone 8. Unlike other chargers, AirPower was designed to charge three devices including an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods.
Unfortunately, the accessory has yet to be released and Apple has not publicly discussed it. Bloomberg sources say engineers have been toiling away to address challenges which include the complexity of the circuitry and making sure the charger doesn't overheat.
In order to be able to place any device anywhere on the mat, multiple charging sensors must be integrated. Apple is using custom charging technology which it plans to integrate with the Qi charging standard.
An executive at an Apple partner that manufactures third-party wireless chargers for iPhones, who asked not to be identified, said that the multi-device charging mechanism is challenging to build because it likely requires different sized charging components for the three types of devices, which would all overlap across the mat.
The AirPower charger will include a custom Apple chip running a stripped down version of iOS for on-device power management and pairing. Engineers are also working to squash bugs related to the on-board firmware.
Apparently, Apple had hoped to launch the charger by June; however, the goal has shifted to before or in September. Testing has purportedly ramped up with engineers using the device as their charger at the office. Pegatron is expected to manufacture the device.
More details in the full report linked below...
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Introduced in September of 2017, the AirPower mat was supposed to compliment the iPhone X and iPhone 8. Unlike other chargers, AirPower was designed to charge three devices including an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods.
Unfortunately, the accessory has yet to be released and Apple has not publicly discussed it. Bloomberg sources say engineers have been toiling away to address challenges which include the complexity of the circuitry and making sure the charger doesn't overheat.
In order to be able to place any device anywhere on the mat, multiple charging sensors must be integrated. Apple is using custom charging technology which it plans to integrate with the Qi charging standard.
An executive at an Apple partner that manufactures third-party wireless chargers for iPhones, who asked not to be identified, said that the multi-device charging mechanism is challenging to build because it likely requires different sized charging components for the three types of devices, which would all overlap across the mat.
The AirPower charger will include a custom Apple chip running a stripped down version of iOS for on-device power management and pairing. Engineers are also working to squash bugs related to the on-board firmware.
Apparently, Apple had hoped to launch the charger by June; however, the goal has shifted to before or in September. Testing has purportedly ramped up with engineers using the device as their charger at the office. Pegatron is expected to manufacture the device.
More details in the full report linked below...
Read More