Smartphone maker Infinix, known for low-end and entry-level Android phones, has announced that its next flagship phone will come with support for 180W fast charging. If that happens, the company’s next phone will surpass the Realme GT Neo 3 and OnePlus 10R as the phones with the fastest charging technology.
Both the Realme GT Neo 3 and OnePlus 10R come with support for 150W fast charging and the Xiaomi 11i Hypercharge has 125W fast charging.
In the official announcement, the company revealed that the phone equipped with 180W charging support – called Thunder Charge Technology – will come with a 4,500mAh battery and can be charged from 1% to 50% in just 4 minutes. Although the company declined to reveal the time it takes to fully charge the phone.
Explaining the technology further, Infinix says the phone uses dual batteries rated 8C – the maximum charge rate for rechargeable lithium batteries in the industry today. The charging power of each battery is only 90W while charging. These batteries are custom made to ensure they do not heat up while charging.
The company says it uses three parallel charging pumps to ensure maximum power delivery to the battery. Infinix claims it uses 111 software and hardware safety protection mechanisms that prevent batteries from heating up and limit voltage and electromagnetic interference to help prevent battery and smartphone damage.
Last but not least, the portable charging pad will come with an encryption chip to ensure ultra-fast charging. If a user opts for a non-compatible charging cable, the charging speed will drop to 60W/100W.
That said, this isn’t Infinix’s first attempt at fame. The company had initially introduced 160W charging technology, however, has never been seen on a commercially available phone. However, it is very likely that the new charging technology will eventually reach the public.
How fast is fast enough?
Until recently, almost everyone carried a power bank to charge their phone on the go. While this was an extra investment, it was necessary because phones had smaller batteries and the included charging pads would take ages to charge the phone.
When brands like OnePlus revolutionized fast charging technology, charging the power bank became a thing of the past as it would hardly take half an hour to charge the phone. Even night charging has become obsolete.
However, many users are still troubled by the impacts of fast charging on battery health and overall device. Multiple phones catching fire or exploding only made matters worse.
So the need to create a good balance between fast charging and battery health needs to be maintained. While Xiaomi’s HyperCharge technology can charge the phone in just 17 minutes, Realme’s 150W takes even less time.
In all likelihood, charging the Infinix’s 180W should take around 10 minutes for a full charge – however – do you really need it or would you prefer a slightly larger battery with a moderate charging speed?