We’ve seen Apple delay several products lately, whether we’re talking about hardware or software. The AirPods, iPhone X, HomePod, and Messages in iCloud are just some of the delayed launches that come to mine. And then there’s AirPower, that multi-device wireless charging pad that Apple unveiled when the iPhone X, iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus were announced last year.
Where is it? Well, a new report now says that AirPower won’t launch until sometime in September. Hopefully.
We first saw the AirPower during Apple’s September 2017 iPhone event. For many, AirPower was a logical addition to Apple’s lineup of accessory. Moments earlier, Apple unveiled had the first iPhones that supported wireless charging, including the iPhone X, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone 8. The AirPower is supposed to charge an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods case simultaneously.
But Apple failed to launch or even publicly address AirPower delays since then.
According to Bloomberg, Apple engineers have been working on fixing several issues with the product. Apple wants to make sure that the charger doesn’t overheat. The complexity of the circuitry is also to blame for the delay. Apparently, the device needs to pack a variety of charging sensors so that the AirPower wireless charging pad just works. Users shouldn’t worry about placing the devices that need charging in a specific spot, either, thanks to smart placement of multiple coils.
The charger is far more sophisticated than anything on the market right now from the competition, featuring a custom Apple chip that runs a simpler iOS version to manage wireless charging, power management, and device pairing. In the future, wireless chargers will be the only way to charge iPhones, Bloomberg notes.
Apple now aims to start selling the AirPower in September, which is even later than the initial delayed release date that had previously been rumored.
