We are now living in an era of speed where everything takes much less time than it did a decade or more ago, and of course smart devices are one of the key elements in this fast-paced system. Now we can do a lot of tasks easily and quickly from our current location. That’s why fast charging technologies have become one of the most important features in any smartphone or smart device. Despite the wide variety of fast charging standards, USB Power Delivery has become the best option now, and all companies are heavily relying on it. So what is this technology and how does it work? This is what we will detail in this article.
What is USB Power Delivery?
USB Power Delivery is one of the fast charging standards adopted by many companies nowadays. However, its initial appearance dates back to 2012, around the same time USB-C was introduced. In general, all USB ports can provide a basic charging level of 5 volts and up to 500 milliamps. The newer ports support 5 volts and 900 milliamps. However, these ports are very slow in charging modern smart devices.
USB Power Delivery, on the other hand, is much more powerful as it supports up to 100 watts of power, which can easily charge various electronic devices including smartphones, tablets, and even large laptops. This standard is more efficient and safer in terms of security as charging devices communicate with phones or computers via a USB cable to provide an optimal power level. This technology supports variable voltage at 5 volts, 9 volts, 15 volts, and 20 volts, with power ranging from 0.5 to 100 watts.
USB Power Delivery is now widely used in many modern smart devices, including Google Pixel phones, Samsung Galaxy S series, and many Apple devices including iPhones, MacBooks, and many other devices.
Read also: What is “Quick Charge” in smartphones and how does it work?
Versions of USB Power Delivery
Generally, USB Power Delivery versions are compatible with each other, meaning you can use a USB PD 1.0 charger to charge a device that supports USB PD 2.0. So far, there are three versions of USB PD that are being continuously developed in terms of charging speed and energy consumption efficiency.
Regarding USB PD 1.0, it was much simpler than the current versions as it supported 6 fixed power options for charging various devices, including 10 watts (5 volts, 2 amps), 18 watts (12 volts, 1.5 amps), 36 watts (12 volts, 3 amps), 60 watts (12 volts, 5 amps), 60 watts (20 volts, 3 amps), and 100 watts (20 volts, 5 amps). Although this was suitable for many devices, it did not achieve the required flexibility, especially for smartphones that need lower voltage for charging.
As for the newer versions, USB PD 2.0 and USB PD 3.0 focus more on flexibility as they allow a wider range of current levels, making them suitable for fast charging many smart devices. The latest versions, especially USB PD 3.0, offer many other features as well including charging efficiency, temperature reduction, increased safety, and much more.
What is the charging speed provided by USB PD?
In reality, it is largely difficult to determine the actual speed of USB PD technology as it varies depending on the charger and the devices being charged. However, in general, some examples can illustrate the charging speed in devices that support this technology. For instance, phones with large battery capacities can be fully charged using USB PD technology with 18 watts in just over an hour, while large laptops with capacities that use 60 watts charging can take between one to two hours.
Unlike laptops, it is not recommended to charge smartphones using high-voltage chargers. Smartphones chargers typically use voltages ranging from 5 to 90 volts and high currents to charge the battery as quickly as possible. For example, OnePlus uses 65 watt charging technology with 10V and 6.5A, and Huawei uses 40W at the same level of 10V and 4A to provide the highest efficiency and speed when charging the phone.
Read also: How will phone batteries be affected by 120W charging?
