More and more devices are supporting wireless charging, and I recently purchased a wireless charger so I could easily charge my phone when I was at my desk. Wireless charging is simple and easy, and there are many charges available on the market.
I selected one manufactured by Anker, because it’s a brand that I trust, and I also know that their products are great quality, especially for the price that they are offered at. The Anker PowerPort is a 5 watt charger that allows you to quickly charge your phone up with ease.
The speed that your phone will charge using wireless charging depends greatly on the USB wall charger you are powering it with – you need a powerful wall charger for a wireless charger if you want to get quick charging times using the wireless charger.
Before you buy a wireless charger, note that wireless charging is not quicker that wired charging. If you want to quickly charge your phone up, use a cable. If you want to keep it topped up during the day, dumping it on the wireless charger whenever you are near it is great. Wireless charging is for convenience, not speed.
Using a 2 amp wall charger with the PowerPort 5 means that you will get a charging speed of 5V/1.0A. Not the fastest charging speed in the world, but once again, wireless charging is more for convenience, not speed. I use the Anker 24W PowerPort 2 charger (a US model is also available) to power the PowerPort 2. This provides plenty of power to the PowerPort, and makes sure that it charges the device as quick as it can. Plus, you have a spare USB socket that allows you to power anything else you are using at your desk – this plug supports fast charging a device through a cable.
One of my favourite things about the wireless charger is how small and unobtrusive it is. It is only 0.4 inches thick, and is 3.9 inches across. As a result it can easily fit on your desk, and doesn’t look obtrusive when you are not charging your device. If you really want, you can also take it in your bag, for example if you want to use it at work and at home.
Setting up the PowerPort is incredibly easy. Just plug it in using the included micro-USB charging cable, and it will power on. Then, just dump on your Qi compatible phone, and it will start charging up. Your phone needs to be roughly centred on the PowerPort so both the coil in the charger and in your phone align. The setup is incredibly easy to do, and it works perfectly once you plug it in. I did find that the included cable was a little short as I wanted the PowerPort on my desk, so I just used a longer one I had lying around instead.
The charger itself is very simple – it has a black rubber top, to stop your phone from slipping around, and a blue status light on the charger. The siding of the charger is made out of high quality plastic. In general, the charger feels really sturdy and nothing is loose. The status light isn’t very bright so it won’t illuminate your whole room if you use the charger at night, which is nice. The blue light acts like a status light, telling you what the charger is doing. When you aren’t charging anything, the light is off, and when you are charging, the light will stay a steady blue.
Another bonus to the wireless charger is that it works through your phone case, providing that the thickness is 5 mm or under. I can easily charge my iPhone on this using my Spigen case.
The charger is incredibly reliable, and I haven’t had a problem with it. It charges my phone well enough, taking around 3 hours to charge it from 50% to 100% without any use. It’s easy to set up, and it is very convenient to be able to easily place your phone down and have it charge up whilst you work on your computer or another device.
I really recommend the PowerPort Wireless 5 – it may not be the most powerful wireless charger, but it certainly gets the job done – well – for a low price of £16.99 (at time of writing) on Amazon.