If the latest rumblings from the rumor mill are accurate, it looks like we might have to wait a bit in order to take advantage of one of the iPhone 8’s more intriguing new features. According to a tweet published by John Gruber over the weekend, the iPhone 8’s wireless charging accessory may not be readily available when the iPhone 8 launches later this year.
Similar to how support for Portrait mode on the iPhone 7 Plus came about one month after the iPhone 7 release, Gruber relays that Apple’s newfangled wireless charging accessory might also be subject to a slight delay.
Gruber’s tweet reads:
I’ve heard that inductive charging will (a) be sold separately, and (b) might be late, waiting for iOS 11.1 (a la Portrait mode last year). https://t.co/N65dHMNQIJ
— John Gruber (@gruber) July 8, 2017
While some may have initially and naively assumed that wireless charging would be an iPhone 8 feature supported right out of the box, more recent reports indicate that wireless charging will only be possible with a standalone accessory sold separately.
Apple of course hasn’t confirmed that wireless charging is on the horizon, but a recently unearthed sound file in iOS 11 called “engage_power.caf” strongly suggests that’s in the works. In case you missed it the first time, here’s what it sounds like.
On a related note, early rumors surrounding wireless charging and the iPhone 8 pointed to a long-range charging solution. Apple’s implementation, however, will likely be much less ambitious. According to Cown and Company analyst Timothy Arcuri, the iPhone 8 will support the Qi wireless charging protocol which requires contact between a device and a charging pad.
Incidentally, a recent research note from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggests that all three devices in Apple’s 2017 iPhone lineup — the iPhone 7, iPhone 7s and the iPhone 8 — will support wireless charging.
