Fast charging is a growing trend in the smartphone market. From Qualcomm’s Quick Charge to OnePlus’ Dash Charging, Huawei’s SuperCharge and Oppo’s VOOC and Super VOOC, a large number of phones feature fast charging in one form or another.
Recent developments indicate that Qualcomm may be working on their next major iteration of fast charging tech, which may be called Quick Charge 5.0.
This was revealed in Qualcomm’s 4G/5G summit in Hong Kong, where the company announced a new 32W charging technology, with up to 15W of wireless fast charging.
In comparison, Huawei’s Super Charge goes up to 40W, Oppo’s Super VOOC manages 50W and Meizu’s mCharge goes as high as 55W.
Currently, Qualcomm has deployed Quick Charge 4.0+ in newer SoCs, which uses an Engine Fast Charging power delivery system. It effectively splits the powerline into 2, allowing better heat dissipation. It can keep phones up to 3 degrees Celsius cooler while charging compared to its predecessor, while also being 15% faster and 30% more efficient.
Doesn’t Stack Up Well Against Competition
Qualcomm’s Quick Charge is, although widespread, it’s not very fast compared to the likes of Huawei, OnePlus or Oppo. Recently Oppo’s Super VOOC (came with Find X) and Huawei Super Charge 2.0 (debuted with Mate 20-series) have left Qualcomm in the dust.
Super VOOC, in particular, is very impressive. It can manage to top up a dead Find X to 100% in just 35 minutes, something which Quick Charge 4+ (Qualcomm’s current best) can’t hope to match.
Launch
Quick Charge 5.0 will have a triple channel power delivery system, which will further improve efficiency and heat dissipation.
It is likely to launch alongside the upcoming Snapdragon 855 (could be 8150, not finalized yet) by the end of this year.
