How Qi wireless charging works, and why it hasn’t taken over yet

Ars Technica:

The Qi wireless charging standard from the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) is having a relatively good year. Now is a good time for a bird’s-eye view of the technology—how it works, what it’s for, and what its prospects are. This is also a good time because millions of Apple ecosystem users are about to get their first sampling of Qi when the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus launch this Friday.

Qi has appeared in phones of various stripes for more than five years, and many people are already using it. The basic tech has been used for consumer products like razors and toothbrushes for a while, plus a variety of non-consumer tools.

If wireless charging has been around for years, why has it struggled to become normal? We’ll get into that shortly. But first, for those who are just getting introduced to Qi, we’ll go into the basics of how it works.

This is another example of a technology that will take off now that Apple is supporting it.