Wireless world

The Wireless Power Consortium recently published a survey of 1,600 consumers in the U.S., U.K., Germany and China, which shows wireless charging is becoming a powerful attraction for consumers around the world. Moreover, that wireless charging adoption is on the rise, battery anxiety is declining, and many consumers realize only Qi-certified (pronounced ‘chee’) wireless charging products offer the best in quality, safety and reliability.

The market is clearly showing all signs that it’s ready for the mass deployment and adoption of Qi wireless power: consumer demand for the service is skyrocketing, as we continue to see in our annual surveys – and already there were over 500 million smartphones and other devices  with wireless power shipped in 2017, according to IHS Markit, while every day new devices continue to launch with Qi wireless power, such as the recently announced Google Pixel 3, XL, Wireless Charging Stand, and Huawei’s Mate 20 Pro, which also acts as a wireless charging powerbank to charge other Qi devices.

This shift in product availability and consumer demand also translates to a necessary shift beginning to happen with brands and those businesses that serve consumers. Just as WiFi was once a differentiating factor as consumers decided which coffee shop to patronize, so too will the availability of Qi wireless charging, in this new era of the wireless world. Just think about the fact there are over 350 million people walking around with Qi-certified devices in their pockets that need power. That’s a significant market with a compelling need. 

There are endless possibilities for how businesses can leverage smart Qi wireless charging for creating more engaging experiences, driving customer loyalty and new revenue opportunities.

Now it’s up to all of us, the leaders in each of our industries, to come together to finally make it a reality. 

Here are more key takeaways from the survey:

With Qi wireless charging now supported by most of today’s leading smartphone manufacturers and already available in thousands of products, consumers appear eager to make wireless power a bigger part of their everyday lives. According to the survey results, the percentage of consumers who use wireless charging grew from 10 percent in December of 2016 (from a similar WPC survey) to 40 percent in April 2018.

Our survey asked consumers if Qi certification is something they should be looking for in a wireless charging product, and the answer was yes. As the popularity of Qi rises, some manufacturers have taken to making non-certified products with false labels like “Qi-enabled” or “Qi compatible.”  Often, these products even illegally use doctored Qi logos. Yet after consumers were exposed to what Qi Certified and proper labeling means, 75 percent said they understood that certification is very or extremely important to ensure the wireless product functioned safely and properly.

The survey found that 92 percent of respondents use their smartphones on a daily basis, and though 70 percent or more of all global consumers still experience some degree of battery anxiety, that number is on the decline as wireless charging becomes more readily available. Finally, while the home remains the most preferred place to wirelessly charge, it’s followed by in the car, at work and while traveling.

You can find more on the survey, including a few infographics, on the WPC blog here.

As we see it, these results paint a promising picture for the over 600 WPC member companies, including Chargifi, and others, who stand behind the Qi wireless standard, the world’s leading wireless charging technology.

Established in 2008, the Wireless Power Consortium is an open, collaborative standards development group of more than 570 company members around the globe. WPC’s members include Apple, ASUS, Belkin, Bosch, Canon, ConvenientPower, Dell, Delphi, Google, Haier, Huawei, IKEA, Lenovo, LG, MediaTek, mophie, NXP, Panasonic, Royal Philips, Samsung, Sony, TDK, Verizon Wireless and Xiaomi. These companies -- large and small competitors and ecosystem partners, from all parts of the industry and all parts of the globe -- collaborate for a single purpose: to design and evolve the world’s most useful, safe and efficient standard for wireless power.