Samsung will be taking a page out of Huawei’s mobile charging book for the next generation of its Android flagship series, with one report from earlier today adding even more credence to rumors suggesting that the upcoming Galaxy S10 line won’t just continue the company’s tradition of wireless charging support but will actually be able to fulfill the role of a charger, at least in specific circumstances.
The image seen below is said to originate from Samsung’s home country and depicts an apparent piece of Galaxy S10 promotional materials. The flyer mentions so-called “reverse wireless charging” in no uncertain terms, according to a machine translation of its contents. The technology is rumored to be utilizing the Qi standard, i.e. the same specification Samsung has been supporting for about half a decade now in some shape or form. According to the same source, Samsung will be advertising the functionality as “Powershare,” at least in South Korea.
A new trend on the horizon
Huawei already commercialized the concept of having a phone act as a power bank for one’s other gadgets last year with the Mate 20 Pro. The feature wasn’t advertised in a particularly aggressive manner but remains unique to its Android flagship, at least for a little while longer; besides Samsung, Huawei itself is reportedly keen to implement the very same technology into its upcoming Android flagships, including the P30 range expected to be announced near the end of the current quarter.
While Samsung didn’t embrace built-in wireless charging overnight and has instead transitioned to it with solutions such as specialized protective cases adding those capabilities to conventional Android handsets, the company now appears to be fully on board of the cordless charging train. Before it greenlit such solutions for use in its products, most of the company’s smartphones were already capable of charging other small electronics via a MicroUSB connection.
It now appears that Samsung and Huawei, the two largest handset vendors in the world, are preparing to kickstart a new trend and consequently possibly accelerate the process of pushing the Internet of Things segment into the mainstream, particularly in the context of consumer-grade gadgets such as smartwatches and AI-enhanced earbuds.
Just the tip of the bleeding-edge-tech iceberg
In practice, charging a device using the Galaxy S10 should be as simple as laying it across Samsung’s Android handset, assuming the two have already been paired once they can recognize each other. The unconventional feature is just one of many such functionalities Samsung intends to offer with the Galaxy S10 line in an effort to revive some of the commercial momentum it lost last year, as evidenced by weaker-than-expected sales of the Galaxy S9 and Note9 lineups, its two main mobile families with the most significant profit margins in the business (not accounting for Apple).
Among other things, the Galaxy S10 series is also expected to be the first to commercialize an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor said to be much more accurate than existing scanners implemented below mobile displays, as well as an entirely new design language Samsung already hinted at with the Galaxy A8s, not to mention a reimagined Android (9 Pie) experience in the form of the company’s proprietary One UI. The Galaxy S10 line is scheduled to be officially announced on February 20 and should start retailing by mid-March.