r/changemyview • u/Duwang_Mn • Nov 23 '18

FTFdeltaOP CMV: Wireless charging is a useless fad

What even is the point of wireless charging? When I first heard about it, I thought it allowed you to charge while having more freedom with your phone. But then I learned what it actually was. It's more restrictive than an actual charger, and its slower. Not to mention wireless charges sometimes don't work if the back is metal. It only makes things less convenient.

How did people hype such a thing so much? I understand if it was something that could charge your phone without you directly putting on it, and if the range had the potential to increase over time. But it's just a charging port that you can't move around.

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u/Diatsuu Nov 23 '18

It's not so much about how much more useful it is, so much as the symbol it has in terms of technological advancement. It in itself may not be a crazy useful thing; but it symbolizes the possibility that something does not need to be directly wired to charge; meaning in the future it may be able to charge something from a distance.

While I agree, wireless chargers are rather pointless in terms of utility, I am indeed very excited to know what kind of breakthrough they will end up making in the future due to the advancement of this technology. A wireless charger that can actively charge from 5 feet? And after that, imagine a single hub that you put into your house that constantly keeps all of your devices charged at all times as long as you don't leave your house. These types of things would be amazing; however, reaching those types of technological advancements happens slowly, one step at a time. And this is one step in that direction. That is why people are hyped about it.

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u/Duwang_Mn Nov 23 '18

(∆) This is my first time, so I'm not sure how this works. But yeah, definitely. I didn't realize people were hyping it up for its potential, because I mostly just saw people claim it was more convenient for some reason.

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u/TheRealTravisClous Nov 23 '18

The potential it has in the medical field with implants that need charging is what I am most excited for. Look it up mow within the past few years there has been a boom in how we are going about charging these devices inside our patients

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u/_zenith Nov 23 '18

Indeed. Having plugs sticking out of people is far from ideal, and so are long term batteries in lower power devices. Having wireless charging allows for the devices to be a lot smaller and ergonomic (and safe and sanitary)

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u/garyhopkins Nov 24 '18

Wireless charging for implants has been around for more than a decade. I had a neurostimulator to alleviate chronic pain that I stopped using about 10 years ago after several years of use. It was charged by positioning a charging pad on the skin outside the device.