The discussion surrounding the iPhone 16 charger supporting up to 45W fast charging is gaining traction. This news is significant because charging power directly influences charging time; higher charging power allows more energy to be transferred in less time. Historically, Apple’s charging power has remained below 27W for many years, so an increase in power could mean noticeably shorter charging times. However, Apple has remained silent on this power increase, leading to much speculation.

Without further ado. We got the iPhone 16 Pro Max as soon as possible and conducted detailed testing for 6 hours in the GaN charger factory’s laboratory.

Let’s give the conclusion first:

• The charging power of the iPhone 16 series is far from exciting. Under extreme working conditions, the charging power of iPhone 16 Pro Max can last 33W, and the instantaneous maximum peak power is 38W~39W.
• In daily working conditions, the maximum power of iPhone 16 Pro Max is 27W, which is almost the same as the previous generation.
• Specifications are not equal to actual operating conditions, so there is no need to be misled by the hype on social media. The parameters of the certification body usually indicate the maximum input voltage and current that the device can withstand, ensuring that the device is compatible with different chargers within a safe range, but does not mean that the device will charge at this power in actual use.
• Not only that, the charging-related hardware configuration of iPhone 16 Pro Max may be the same as that of iPhone 15 Pro Max

CQC official certification parameters: 45W
Twitter users: up to 39W
Apple: not a word

The number 45W first came from the China Quality Certification Center (CQC)’s 3C certification information for the iPhone 16 series: The entire iPhone 16 series supports a charging power of up to 15V 3A, with a theoretical maximum power supply of 45W.

Comparing the charging parameters of iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 from the China Quality Certification Center, we can also see a significant increase in charging power.

After the news came out, Twitter user @UniverseIce also made a “text confirmation” based on reliable industry sources: the iPhone 16 series can reach up to 39W.

This seems like “good news”

This is indeed good news for users – iPhone charging power has not changed for many years. The previous maximum power was only 29W and the maximum voltage supported 9V. In most cases, the maximum power of the latest Apple phones hovers around 27W.

The iPhone 16 series directly breaks through the charging voltage from 9V to 15V for the first time, and increases the charging power from 27W to 45W, which is a gratifying increase. If it reaches 45W in actual use, the charging speed will take off for iPhone users… Is the mobile phone charging faster than the MacBook?

Compared with the heated discussions among users on social media, Apple has kept a low profile on the changes in charging power of the iPhone 16 series. There is even no relevant explanation on the iPhone 16 series charging specifications page on Apple’s official website.

Just a good “news”
——39W is the peak value, 27W is the daily value

How is it actually used? After receiving the iPhone 16 series products, we immediately invited the hardware engineers from the factory to conduct a comprehensive test in the laboratory in three dimensions:

• Peak power test: Challenge whether iPhone 16 Pro Max can reach the highest power in parameters
• Simulate daily charging test: observe charging power fluctuations of iPhone 16 Pro Max in daily scenarios
• Comparison test: Using iPhone 15 Pro Max as a reference to discuss changes in iPhone charging strategy

1. Actual measurement of charging power under extreme working conditions (which you will never encounter)

First, to challenge whether the iPhone 16 Pro Max can reach the highest power in terms of parameters, we set up more extreme test conditions:

• Only 2% battery left,
• Adjust the screen brightness to the highest level,
• Simultaneously record 4K 120 frame video,
• The unit is in a cold start condition and uses a semiconductor back clip heat sink.

The measured charging curve of iPhone 16 Pro Max is as follows:

When the battery is low, the power consumption is high, and heat dissipation is allowed (with a semiconductor cooling back clip), the charging power of the iPhone 16 Pro Max can last for a short period of time (10 minutes) at 33W, during which the instantaneous maximum peak power is 38W~39W, and then Power drops will occur because high power consumption conditions cannot be maintained continuously.

If you want higher parameters, there is still room for improvement, but there is a question mark as to how valuable the highest parameters tested in extreme environments are for daily use.

2. Daily use scenario simulation test

In order to better simulate daily charging, we set up test conditions closer to daily use in the new round of testing:

• Allow the device to cool to room temperature.
• The magnetic holder is set to enter “standby mode” and the widget displays the battery level.
• Use professional testing tools to connect to the host computer and record the entire charging process.
• It takes about 1 hour and 45 minutes to charge from 2% to 100%. The complete charging power curve changes as follows:

Judging from the specific power curve changes, the iPhone 16 Pro Max adopts this charging strategy:

• Under daily conditions, except for occasional large fluctuations when operating the phone, the maximum power is basically maintained below 27W.
• Before the battery reaches 80%, the charging power of iPhone 16 Pro Max decreases in a step-like manner.
• After 80% battery, iPhone 16 Pro Max enters trickle charging mode and the power slowly decreases.

In addition, the iPhone 16 Pro Max occasionally experiences high instantaneous power during charging, but the maintenance time is extremely short (in milliseconds).

The instantaneous power has indeed reached the level of 39W – Apple is like providing us with a car that can run at a top speed of 200km/h, but actual users may not be able to run at 200km/h every day. Even if you have the guts to run to 200km/h, you still need the necessary road conditions.

3. Comparison test with (previous generation) iPhone 15 Pro Max

We continued to conduct comparison tests under the same conditions with the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Even in the peak power test of “low battery, high power consumption, and cold machine”, the charging power of the iPhone 15 Pro Max remains at 9V 3A, or 27W. The overall power curve is very flat with almost no fluctuations.

This situation is mainly caused by Apple’s restrictions on charging power

Three interesting discoveries: New wine in old bottles?

Using the our GaN charger factory-developed IonBridge programmable PD power supply and the EZ-PD™ CY4500 protocol analyzer, we made three discoveries:

1. The iPhone 15 Pro Max theoretically supports 15V high-voltage high-power charging (i.e. Sink_Capabilities message), which can even reach 44W – this is completely consistent with the message information returned by the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and the charging mode combinations supported by the two are also completely consistent

2.Through the hardware PD protocol parameters, we also made new discoveries: except for the ID, other parameter specifications are basically the same. It can be seen that from a hardware perspective, the iPhone 15 Pro Max already has the same configuration as the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

We have reason to speculate that the iPhone 15 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro Max use the same hardware configuration, but Apple limits it to 9V 3A specifications for some reasons. This also explains why the charging power curve of iPhone 16 Pro Max occasionally appears with higher instantaneous peak power, but the curve of iPhone 15 Pro Max is very flat.

Of course, even if the protocol parameters are the same, Apple’s iPhone 16 series may have made improvements in hardware design, material selection, thermal design and internal optimization. In addition, charging performance not only depends on hardware, but also is closely related to software algorithms. Apple may improve charging efficiency and battery life through continued software optimization.

3. Still not supported using PPS protocol (Programmable Power Supply)

At the same time, it can be clearly seen from the Request message that the iPhone 16 Pro Max requested a 15V 3A Fixed PDO (Power Delivery Object) and still does not support the use of the PPS protocol (Programmable Power Supply).

PPS is an optional feature in the USB-PD 3.0 standard. Its predecessor was QC5, which was developed by Qualcomm and later merged into the standard. Apple has no device support yet. The advantage of the PPS protocol is that it can dynamically adjust voltage (usually 3.3V to 21V) and current within a certain range to achieve a more flexible and efficient charging experience. Galaxy and Pixel are the biggest supporters.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max requests a fixed PDO of 15V 3A, which indicates that the device relies on a fixed voltage charging level rather than the dynamic voltage and current adjustment capabilities provided by PPS. Apple has chosen a fixed-gear approach, which means that its devices cannot finely adjust the voltage in real time during the charging process, and thus cannot take advantage of the charging efficiency and flexibility provided by PPS. This trade-off is also consistent with Apple’s pursuit of device consistency and autonomous control.

So far, the rumors that Apple and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra chargers are compatible have also been falsified. Only Samsung supports real 45W PPS.

Why did Apple’s press conference say nothing about changes in charging power?

When learning about the iPhone 16 power specifications disclosed by CQC, many people will wonder why Apple has not publicized such a big improvement in the charging power of the new generation iPhone?

In fact, this is in line with Apple’s consistent user communication strategy.

From Apple’s perspective, user experience is far more worthy of emphasis than technical parameters. They are more willing to promote the overall experience improvement brought by the product, such as extended battery life, faster charging and other practical effects, rather than simply emphasizing technical parameters. In fact, Apple’s user base also pays more attention to the overall performance, ease of use and ecosystem integration of the device. Therefore, Apple’s new product announcements have always focused on performance improvements, software optimization and other functions that are closer to users’ daily use, rather than over-emphasis on a certain technical point, especially technical parameters that are difficult to understand.

Moreover, Apple has always had extremely high requirements for the stability and safety of its products. Compared with its peers’ strategy of pushing higher power and shortening charging time, Apple may pay more attention to factors such as heat management and battery life during charging. Therefore, it is very likely that Apple is unwilling to let the 45W figure become the focus of publicity, so as not to overly raise consumers’ expectations for fast charging speed and ignore the stability and safety issues under long-term use.

The more important reason may be that Apple is a “conservative” company.

Apple adopts a cautious strategy in product launch and technology adoption, fully considering compatibility and optimization with the entire ecosystem (this may be what people often call squeezing toothpaste), which helps it maintain a high-quality user experience and brand loyalty. The new product gives higher power space, but controls the charging strategy. This is also to continue Apple’s previous charging strategy. Due to Apple’s device self-protection mechanism, under extreme conditions, the device may briefly increase the charging power to meet high power consumption needs, but this does not mean that the device will charge at such a high power under normal circumstances.

As early as the iPhone 13 Pro Max, Apple has supported 9V 3A charging parameters. For iPhone 13, the theoretical peak charging power can reach 27W, but in actual use it is only about 22W. Combined with actual testing, it is not difficult to find that although under extreme load conditions in the laboratory, the charging power has the opportunity to reach the theoretical power, in actual use scenarios, there are not many such opportunities.

In some low-power, high-power consumption, and low-temperature situations, the charging power may exceed that of the previous generation in a short period of time. However, due to the close hardware configuration, the difference in daily use experience will not be too big – this also explains why Apple There was no mention of this at the press conference.

Do I need to buy a 45W charger for the iPhone 16 series?

Apple officially recommends a minimum 20W charger.

But you may not be satisfied with the charging speed. According to the results of this test

• Under extreme conditions of low power, high power consumption, and heat dissipation allowed, the iPhone 16 Pro Max charging power can last 33W, and the instantaneous maximum peak power is 38W~39W;
• Under daily conditions, except for occasional large fluctuations when operating the phone, the maximum power of the iPhone 16 Pro Max is basically maintained below 27W.

Therefore, if you are an Apple mobile phone user and need daily fast charging, a 35W GaN charger is undoubtedly enough to cover the iPhone 16 series mobile phones; if you are an Apple family user, a 65 GaN charger or higher is a better choice. E-commerce platforms may soon have advertisements that are “fully compatible with iPhone 45W charger”. But what you need to consider more may be the size of the 45W charger(the 45W one will be much larger), design and your brand preference.

Summarize:

• In most cases, the user experience of charging the iPhone 16 series will be the same as the previous generation, with a total charging time of about 1 hour and 45 minutes from 2% to 100%.
• Under extreme working conditions, the charging power of iPhone 16 Pro Max can last 33W, and the instantaneous maximum peak power is 38W~39W.
• In daily working conditions, the maximum power of iPhone 16 Pro Max is 27W, which is almost the same as the previous generation.
• Specifications are not equal to actual operating conditions, so there is no need to be misled by the hype on social media. The parameters of the certification body usually indicate the maximum input voltage and current that the device can withstand, ensuring that the device is compatible with different chargers within a safe range, but does not mean that the device will charge at this power in actual use. The actual charging power of Apple devices is determined by the charge management system inside the device to optimize battery life and device safety. Even if a device supports higher voltages and currents, actual charging power may be limited to a lower level.

However, the iPhone charging specification supports 45W, which is still good news. Apple’s decision to jump directly from 20W to 45W must have been made based on multiple considerations of balancing technology, user needs, market competition, and the future development of the device.

Apple, which pays attention to user experience, may be doing Keep Patching for future product upgrades.