iPhone 11 Lineup May Have Software-Disabled Bilateral Wireless Charging Hardware

Apple’s new iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro may contain the hardware needed for bilateral wireless charging.

According to “reliable sources” cited by leaker and former Apple blogger Sonny Dickson (via MacRumors), a “reliable source” informed him the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro do “include the hardware for bilateral charging.” However, Apple apparently disabled the software needed to make it work.

If this is indeed the case, that means the iPhone 11 series does support bilateral charging, technically. But Apple may not be willing to activate the software side of things so the phones can actually get the job done.

The ability to wirelessly charge other devices could be a reason why the new phones are both thicker and heavier than their predecessors, with batteries that are at least 10 percent larger. The iPhone 11 Pro features a battery that lasts 4 hours longer than the iPhone XS, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max’s battery lasts 5 hours longer than the iPhone XS Max. That additional “juice” would definitely be beneficial if you needed to charge your Apple Watch, AirPods, or a friend’s iPhone when you’re on-the-go and don’t have access to an outlet.



The consumer electronics giant never confirmed or promised reverse charging would come with the iPhone 11 or 11 Pro smartphones, but expectations had mounted with rumours that Apple planned to do so. Rival Samsung built reverse charging into its Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note, letting those phones charge devices like earbuds, smartwatches and other phones, even using reverse charging as a selling point in TV commercials.

It’s possible that the hardware will have been removed by the time people start receiving their orders next Friday, September 20th. Or some early models might have it but later ones don’t. We’ll know for sure once the team at iFixit rips one apart.

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