What you need to know
- New tests by ChargerLAB reveal iOS 13.1 is capping the wireless charging capacity of iPhone 11 devices.
- Tests show speeds have been capped out at 5W even for wireless chargers that support 7.5W speeds.
- The issue seems to be a new fix-frequency voltage regulation Apple rolled out with iOS 13.1
Testing conducted by ChargerLAB has revealed that iPhone 11 devices with iOS 13.1 installed have had their wireless charging speeds capped to 5W even when used with wireless charging pads capable of delivering 7.5W.
The lower power output results in slower charging speeds for the iPhone 11 devices. ChargerLAB notes that it conducted a wireless charging test of the iPhone 11 on iOS 13 and the result was impressive.
However, once Apple rolled out the iOS 13.1 update, the charging speeds changed.
As we can see, in iOS 13.1, the output power of the wireless charger only pulled 6-7W during our test. The power received at the phone end reached only about 5W, which is very different from our previous test. So after updating from iOS 13.0 to iOS 13.1, using the same wireless charger to charge iPhone 11, the charging speed with iOS 13.1 dropped to about 70% of the speed with iOS 13.0.
The culprit seems to be a new fixed-frequency regulation Apple passed with iOS 13.1. Only a few select wireless chargers from Belkin, Mophie, Native Union, Anker and Logitech that are sold through Apple Stores and support the fixed-frequency voltage that Apple recommends deliver the full 7.5W wireless charging speeds.
MacRumors notes that Apple refers to the fixed-frequency 7.5W charging as "Apple Fast Charging," but the technology was added to the Qi standard last year so it's not something that should fall under the Apple MFi program.
It's still unclear if the new fix-frequency charging speeds with iOS 13.1 is only affecting newer iPhone 11 devices or if all Qi compatible iPhone devices are subject to the changes.
It's something worth keeping in mind if people charge an iPhone 11 model with a third-party wireless charger that doesn't support the fix-frequency voltage speeds.
