Tech

Apple should copy this awesome Galaxy S10 feature for new iPhones and AirPods

Key Points
  • The Galaxy S10 has a really fun feature that Apple should use on its new iPhones.
  • It's called wireless power share, and you can charge headphones, a Samsung watch or another phone by holding it to the back of a Galaxy S10.
  • Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggests Apple will add this in future iPhones.
You can charge phones and other gadgets from the Galaxy S10e, Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10+.
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A new feature in Samsung's Galaxy S10 phones lets you turn your phone into a wireless charging pad, which means you can power up wireless accessories like headphones without plugging them in. It's an awesome experience that I think Apple should add to its new iPhones, and there's evidence Apple might actually do it.

Here's how it works: You swipe down from the top of the screen on a new Galaxy S10, enable wireless power share in the menu by tapping an icon, then place the phone face down on a table.

Then, you take an accessory like Samsung's Galaxy Buds or a Galaxy Watch and place them on the back of the phone. The accessory will start charging.

It's amazing if you don't have access to a power outlet, like when you're on a plane, and it worked well when I had a chance to try it ahead of the Galaxy S10's announcement. (You can technically use wireless power share to charge other phones, too, but it's really slow.)

Apple should — and very well might — add this sort of support to new iPhones and AirPods. If it does, you won't need to carry around a Lightning cable. You'll be able to keep your AirPods charged as long as you have battery life left in your iPhone.

Apple AirPods don't currently support wireless charging, but authoritative Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said earlier this month that a new model will offer wireless charging and that Apple's next iPhones will offer support for "bilateral wireless charging for charging other devices."

Even so, Apple's new iPhones aren't expected until the fall, when the company typically announces them, so Samsung has a big head start on getting this tech out the door.

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