Samsung Galaxy S6 bolsters wireless charging

The adoption of wireless inductive charging into mobile phones is not itself a new concept, for example the Nokia Lumia 930 has a Qi-standard receiver built in. This announcement from Samsung provides a huge boost to the wireless power industry with its potential to drive market awareness and shipment volumes.

The decision to provide a dual-mode receiver capable of receiving power from either a PMA or Qi transmitter is also an interesting step. Infrastructure investment is on the increase, as shown by recent tie-ups such as Starbucks with PMA in the USA and the IKEA announcement of Qi-equipped furniture at MWC. 

However, manufacturers are clearly focused on providing a seamless charging experience for their end-user, where interoperability is extremely important.Therefore, IHS expects dual-mode receiver solutions are likely to be an increasing trend for new products. Whilst tri-modal solutions that also include resonant technology such as the A4WP Rezence standard, will become more common in the medium-to-long term.

Analysis from the upcoming 2015 IHS Wireless Power Report suggest that this announcement will clearly drive a huge increase in receiver shipments, with the total forecast to exceed 100m units by the end of the year just from mobile handsets. With further inductive and resonant product releases expected later this year, this Samsung announcement is the first large step for wireless charging in what looks to be a breakthrough year for the technology.