What to look when choosing a charger, so you can land on one that you can maximize its use? This blog tell you about 3 factors to consider if you're not technology savvy. And they are: Power, ports, and fast-charging protocols.
Power
Power refers to the max rated power a charger can deliver. The higher the power, the faster you can charge your devices in most cases. Think of it like a faucet. The bigger it is, the more water it can deliver within a time frame, and the quicker it can fill up a water bottle.
These following powers would suffice on a daily basis.
Phones
iPhones: Typically 20W to 30W
Android phones: The power varies since there are so many Android phones, but PD 30W would be a safe choice.
Tablets
In this catagory, you will typically need 20W to 45W as they have a bigger battery capacity.
Laptops
For light laptops, 45W to 65W would be a great choice of range.
For heavy-duty laptops, 90W to 140W and even higher would sustain the power-hungry device.
Wearables and Accessories
If you use smart watches and Bluetooth earbuds, any USB charger would work as they require less power.
Port Types
You may find USB-A or USB-C ports or both on a charger, with USB-C becoming the mainstream for its minimum size and efficiency. If you're buying a charger to go with the cable you're already using, take the cable's interface into consideration. We recommend chargers with both USB-A and USB-C ports for future-proof.
Fast-charging Protocols
Fast-charging protocols are the "languages" charger, charging cable, and device use to communicate with each other. If they happen to speak the same language — say all supports 120W fast charging, you may achieve that high speed. If there's a "language barrier", you may still charge the device, but only at a slow rate.
PD (USB Power Delivery)
Among all the protocols, PD is now the most universal language. It was short for USB Power Delivery, created by USB-IF organization. By the most universal language, we mean it's best for most devices, from iPhones, iPads, MacBooks, to most Android devices, switch and laptops. PD also has a power range from 18W to 240W, which again makes it universally compatible.
QC (Quick Charge)
QC is a standard created by Qualcomm — Yes, that chip-making company. It was used on most Qualcomm-powered Android devices from older generations. So it's less universal than PD.
Other Protocols
Smart phone companies also created their own fast charging protocols to fast charge their own devices. Such as VOOC by OPPO and OnePlus, HyperCharge by Xiaomi, SuperCharge by Huawei.
If you use these brand-specific devices and you want to achieve fast charging on them, brand-specific chargers would be a no-brainer.
Conclusion and Cheat Sheet for Choosing a Charger
Before you buy a charger, we suggest that you take the following steps.
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Study your devices' max power input, so you can better understand their fast charging rates.
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If you juggle multiple devices, choose a charger whose output power matches that of your most power-hungry device's input power, so you have downward compatibility.
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It would be the best if the charger has multiple ports. It can be a combination of USB-A and USB-C ports if you still use cables that feature a USB-A port; or all USB-C ports to futureproof your charging needs.
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When it comes to fast charging protocols, PD is the most universal one as it's compatible with most devices on the market, be it iOS or Android.