Tired of Waiting for Your iPhone 16 to Charge? Turns Out, You Might Be Doing It Wrong!
So, Apple, in their infinite wisdom, decided to stop including chargers with iPhones. Great for the environment, maybe. Not so great for your sanity when you’re staring at that little lightning bolt, praying for a few more percentage points. But hold on, there’s MORE. Apparently, figuring out how to charge your shiny new iPhone 16 at warp speed is like trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube blindfolded. They threw in this thing called “MagSafe,” which, like its name suggests, is both magical and…a little bit safe? Let’s break down this charging circus, shall we?
First up, we’ve got USB-C charging. Good news, folks! All the iPhone 16 models can go from zero to hero (or at least 50%) in about half an hour. The catch? You need the right adapter. Apple’s 20W one will do the trick, or anything better if you’re feeling fancy. Now, there were whispers that these bad boys could handle a whopping 45W, but some folks over at “ChargerLAB” did some testing and, well, busted that myth. Turns out, 30W is the magic number. Same as last year’s iPhone 15 Pro.
But wait, there’s a plot twist! Some people saw their iPhones charging faster than 30W, but only when they were doing stuff like playing games. Basically, it’s like the phone’s saying, “Hey, I see you’re using a lot of juice. Let me crank up the charging so we can keep this party going.” “PhoneArena” did some tests and found that the iPhone 16 could hit 39W for a bit while gaming and under 50% battery. But when the phone was just chillin’, they didn’t see anything above 20W for the iPhone 16 or 27W for the iPhone 16 Pro.
Now, because we’re thorough like that, we did our own little charging experiment. We took an iPhone 16 Pro Max and juiced it up with different chargers. With a 30W charger, it hit 55% in 30 minutes. With a 20W charger, 45%. And with a super-powered 140W charger? 56%. So, yeah, you can get a little extra oomph with a 30W charger or higher, even though Apple only recommends 20W. But going above 30W doesn’t seem to make much of a difference.
Bottom line? If you’ve got an iPhone 16 Pro or Pro Max and a 20W charger, you’re probably good. You’ll get close to that 50% in 30 minutes. But if you’re a hardcore gamer or just want the absolute fastest charging possible, maybe think about upgrading to a 30W+ charger. Oh, and you can totally use higher-watt chargers too. 20W is just the bare minimum for “fast” charging.
Now, let’s talk about this “MagSafe” thing. The iPhone 16 models can charge wirelessly at up to 25W with MagSafe, which is a big jump from the old 15W. That means you can FINALLY fast charge wirelessly. But here’s the kicker: you need a 30W or higher adapter AND one of Apple’s new MagSafe chargers. The old MagSafe chargers are stuck at 15W, and so are third-party ones. So, if you’ve got a fancy MagSafe stand or multi-device charger, it’s basically a dinosaur now.
So, if you’re keeping score at home, here’s the cheat sheet for iPhone 16 fast charging:
- **USB-C for iPhone 16:** 20W or better adapter, plus the cable that came with your phone. 30W is better if you’re a power user.
- **USB-C for iPhone 16 Pro:** Go for a 30W or better adapter for maximum speed.
- **MagSafe:** You’ll need a 30W or better adapter AND Apple’s new $39 MagSafe Charger.
Oh, and one more thing! If you want to transfer files from your iPhone 16 Pro like a speed demon, you’ll need a USB 3 cable for 10Gb/s transfer speeds. The one that comes with the phone is stuck in the slow lane at 480Mb/s.
There you have it, folks. The ins and outs of iPhone 16 charging. Now go forth and charge with confidence!
From the sales floor to the critic's corner, I'm a former Apple Sales Specialist who's not afraid to tell it like it is. Get my honest takes on the iPhone, Mac, and everything Apple. | Los Angeles, California.