How long does it take to properly charge a phone or tablet? Is it six hours? Four hours? Or three hours? And is it true a fast charger will damage my phone’s battery?

As an owner of a smartphone or tablet, I’m sure you have heard claims a fast charger damages the battery. However, this isn’t necessarily true.

Keynote:

non-certified or low-quality fast charger (that doesn’t adhere to safety standards) can potentially damage your device through inconsistent or excessive power

A fast charger is a type of charger that charges your phone or any other electronic gadget quicker than a standard charging device. It usually delivers a higher power wattage using advanced charging technologies like Power Delivery (PD) or Quick Charge (QC). And either of these technologies helps increase the power flow to your device safely. Thus, reducing the overall time it would have taken to reach a full charge.

Crucial Features of a Good Fast Charger for Phones

When choosing a fast charger for your phone, tablet, handheld gaming console, or any other gadget, there are some crucial tips to consider. They include:

·        Higher Power Output (Wattage)

As I’ve briefly mentioned above, fast chargers deliver more power flow to reduce charging time. The most common fast chargers in Kenya include 15W, 25W, 30W, 45W, and 65W.

Tip: A standard charger often delivers a wattage of 3W to 10W. Most of the certified fast chargers increase the output voltage without changing amperage. But some fast-charging devices can boost up both the voltage and amperage.

The Two Common Technologies Behind Fast Charger Charging

A fast charger utilizes latest technologies to increase power flow safely. The two common universal technologies include:

• Power Delivery (PD) – This is one of the most advanced and universal standards for fast chargers in the market. The fast charging protocol can deliver up to 240W power output. Hence, making it suitable for a range of devices, including phones, tablets, and even laptops.
• Quick Charge (QC) – this is another technology for fast chargers in the market. Qualcomm innovated the tech, which would explain why it’s more common on Android devices. The fastest Quick Charge 5 (QC5) charger can deliver up to 100W (but QC4+ at 27W is the most common)

Note: Types of Fast Chargers Vary

Most fast chargers are usually around the two technologies above. But the three types of fast charging you’ll find are:

1. USB-C Power Delivery (PD) Chargers: common for smartphones, tablets, laptops, handheld consoles, and various other gadgets.
2. Quick Charge (QC) Charger: for Android phones and gadgets that support Qualcomm’s charging technology.
3. Proprietary Fast Chargers, which are specific to certain devices. A nice example is Apple Lightning, OPPO’s SuperVOOC, OnePlus’ Warp Charge, et cetera. But be careful around these charging systems as they tend to be limited to the brand’s devices.

·         Optimized Charging Speeds

An original fast charger can charge a phone from 0% to around 50% in 30 minutes. The charging speed will then slow down as the battery fills to avoid overheating, and prolong battery life.

Tip: when your phone is overheating or the battery starts draining faster than before, chances are the fast charger doesn’t have proper optimization safeguards.

·        Intelligent Power Delivery

Latest fast chargers are coming with built-in intelligent power delivery to regulate power output. The technology will adjust the power flow as per the battery capacity of the device and its (battery’s) condition. Thus, make sure your phone can charge without overloading (the battery).

·        Fast Charging Compatibility

As stupid as it sounds, yes, compatibility matters as not all phones support fast charging. If your device supports fast charging, the user guide will certainly state the fast-charging technology supported.

That is whether your phone supports PD, QC, or proprietary fast charging protocols (like Samsung’s Adaptive Fast Charging or Apple’s 20W USB-C adapter).

The 7 Best Fast Chargers in Kenya Right Now

Below are some of the best fast chargers for phones in Kenya currently and their power output:

Does a Fast Charger Damage Phone’s Battery?

A common misconception is that fast chargers damage devices’ batteries. However, this isn’t necessarily true. How so?

• Built-in Fast Charger Safeguards

Latest phones have built-in safeguards to regulate the charging process and ensure the battery is safe. The safeguards are the fast-charging protocols I’ve already mentioned, such as Power Delivery (PD) or Quick Charge (QC).

Make sure you use the correct protocol as it ensures your device gets the correct amount of power it can safely handle.

·        Fast Charger Battery Management System (BMS)

A genuine phone compatible with a fast charger often has sophisticated battery management systems (BMS). BMS is what slows down charging when the battery reaches higher percentages to prevent overheating and wear issues. Thus, preserving the overall long-term health.

·        Fast Charger Heat Management

A fast charger works at a higher wattage than that of traditional chargers. As such, there would be an issue of excessive heating if your device doesn’t have proper heat management.

Good heat management is where your phone charges rapidly when the battery is low, then slows down as it fills. Thus, helping avoid overheating.

Tip: Heat is one of the causes of battery degradation over time. A device that supports fast charging should be able to manage the dispersed high temperatures effectively to avoid this degradation. But you must also play your part and avoid charging your device around environments where it can overheat- such as near fireplaces, heaters, or direct sunlight.

·        Certified Fast Charger

The best way to charge your device rapidly and safely is by using a certified fast charger. Certified fast chargers will have the safety certifications I’ve mentioned above. Some examples are fast chargers directly from phone manufacturers, like Apple and Samsung, or certified third-party brands such as Oraimo.

Tip: A non-certified or low-quality fast charger (that doesn’t adhere to safety standards) can potentially damage your device through inconsistent or excessive power. It can cause power fluctuation or overheating inside the battery, which in turn can damage it.

Final Thoughts

A fast charger is just like any other latest invention, albeit in power efficiency. It offers high-wattage charging that helps your device charge faster than the normal charger. Thus, reducing the total wait times and making sure your phone or any other mobile gadget is ready to use quickly.

Like I’ve said, though, your device must support fast charging before you can use such a charger safely. If supported, you must also use a certified fast charger and the specific type compatible with your device.

Do remember fast charging requires your device to have good heat management to avoid battery damage. And this means the high-wattage charging won’t be ideal in extremely hot conditions.

It is worth mentioning battery degradation is a normal occurrence on all types of batteries. The degradation is inevitable as one of the contributors is the chemical reactions inside the battery due to charging and discharging cycles.

So, charging your device too often with either a standard or fast charger will degrade the battery capacity. But a fast charger may slightly accelerate this degradation if used a lot. It is a minimal effect, and most users only experience a slight difference in long-term battery health

If concerned about that minimal effect on the long-term battery health of your device, I’d recommend you use a fast charger only when needed. Say, you do fast charging when you want the device ready to use or go. Then, slow charge the device when you have more time to wait – say overnight at home.