Just plop your phone on a stand, a pad, or even furniture with built-in wireless charging, and voila, it starts charging.

只要把手機放上充電座、充電板，或甚至是內建無線充電的家具，輕輕鬆鬆它就開始充電了！

No cables, no fuss.

少了電線，少了麻煩。

Even though most newer phones have wireless charging, one research report showed that only 29% of people use it.

雖然新一點的手機都有無線充電功能，一項研究顯示僅 29% 的人在用。

Why hasn't it taken off?

為什麼它沒有變得普及呢？

Well first of all, you need a phone or a phone case that's capable of wireless charging, and not everyone has one.

首先你得要有可以無線充電的手機或手機外殼，不是每個人都有。

Qi is the standard for almost all wireless chargers.

Qi 幾乎是每一件無線充電器所採用的標準。

Phones that support Qi are mainly newer phones from Apple, Samsung, Google, and LG.

支援 Qi 的手機通常都是較新的蘋果、三星、谷歌、LG 機型。

Secondly, wireless chargers are slower than wired chargers.

再來，無線充電器會充得比一般充電器還慢。

The thing about wireless charging is it uses something called electromagnetic induction.

無線充電的特點在於它運用的是電磁感應。

Basically transferring energy from one place, like your charging mat, for example, to another, your phone.

簡單來說就是把電能從一個地方 (例如充電座) 轉移到另一處 (像是你的手機)。

Wireless charging uses two physical coils.

無線充電會用到兩種實體的電纜線。

The induction coil in the charger and the receiver coil in the phone.

充電器裡的導入線圈，還有手機裡的接收線圈。

If you don't align the two coils on top of each other, your device won't charge correctly.

如果兩種線圈沒有對齊，你的裝置就無法正確充電。

This method of charging is slower than plugging your phone straight into an outlet, which lets the power flow from the outlet through the wired charger to your phone.

這種充電方法會比直接將手機插進電能出口來得慢；後者是讓電流從出口經過充電器，再到你的手機。

Most wired chargers have a rating of at least 12 watts, while most wireless chargers only reach about 7.5 or 10 watts.

大部分有線充電器的電功率至少可以達到 12 瓦特，但多數無線充電器只有 7.5 或 10 瓦特。

Basically, the smaller the number, the longer it'll take to charge your phone.

簡單來說，電功率數字越小，你的手機就得充越久。

And if you have a case for your phone, it'll charge even slower, or might not even work at all.

另外若你的手機裝在手機殼裡，它就會充得更慢，甚至根本充不進去。

Some wireless chargers do have a fast-charge mode, but it'll only work with phones from the same manufacturer.

有些無線充電器雖然有快速充電模式，但這功能只有同廠產品能夠使用。

So a Google Qi charger might fast-charge a Pixel but not a Galaxy.

因此谷歌的 Qi 充電器或許可以讓一支 Pixel 手機快速充電，三星 Galaxy 就不行。

Yes, if you're not looking for a fast charger, or if you're only charging your phone at night while you sleep, then a wireless charger could work for you.

當然如果你不用充得很快，或者你只在晚上睡覺時充電，那無線充電器可能會是你的選項。

But for the most part, you can't use your phone while it charges wirelessly.

不過通常你無法在無線充電的時候滑手機。

If you take your phone off the wireless charger to do anything, it'll stop charging.

如果你把手機拿下充電座去做別的事情，它就會停止充電了。

You can't text comfortably without lifting your phone off the charger, you can't sit on the couch and scroll through Instagram.

如果不把手機從充電座移開，你就不能舒服地打字；你沒辦法坐在沙發上瀏覽 Instagram。

And you can't even take a phone call properly.

你還不能好好接一通電話。

But with a cord, you can do all those tasks while staying plugged in.

用電線的話，你可以一邊插著充電、一邊完成所有任務。

Also, these wireless chargers are technically not wireless.

再者理論上來說，這些無線充電器也不是無線的。

They still have to be plugged into an outlet.

他們還是得插在電源上。

The only wireless part about it is eliminating the wire between your phone and the charger.

之所以叫無線，只不過是把你的手機和充電器之間的電線拿走了。

The price of these chargers is another issue.

這些充電器的價格也是個問題。

The more affordable chargers range from $15 to $30, while the fancier ones cost anywhere from $60 to $100.

最便宜的從 15 塊美金到 30 塊，貴一點的則要 60 塊到 100 塊美金。

But it doesn't look like wireless charging is disappearing anytime soon.

不過看起來無線充電短期內不會消失。

One report is expecting that by 2023, there will be a cumulative shipment of 2.7 billion wireless chargers and 6 billion devices with wireless charging capabilities.

一項報告指出到了 2023 年，無線充電器的總運量會達到 27 億，且會有 60 億項裝置具備無線充電功能。

But for wireless charging to become the norm, companies will need to figure out ways to make it more practical and frictionless.

但如果無線充電想變成主流，製造商就必須想辦法讓它更實用、阻力更小。

Companies like Pi, Energous, and Ossia are getting there with their truly wireless charging products.

幾間公司像是 Pi、Energous、Ossia 都正在著手推出「真無線」商品。

They claim that their products can charge multiple devices wirelessly when you bring them within a short range, kind of like how WiFi works.

他們聲稱只要你拿得夠靠近，就能夠同時讓好幾台裝置無線充電，有點像 WiFi 的運作原理。

Basically, if you hold or place your wireless charging phone, tablet, and headphones around the wireless charger, it'll begin to charge your devices, which sounds pretty cool and is a great step forward.

基本上如果你把無線充電手機、平板、耳機，都拿到無線充電器附近，它就可以開始為所有裝置充電。這聽起來真的蠻酷的，會是一大進步。

But the thing is, none of these companies have released their product yet.

不過重點是，這些公司的產品都還未上市。

It's just all talk.

還沒付諸實行。

Just like Apple with their AirPower.

就像 Apple 計畫推出的無線充電器 AirPower 一樣。

So, I'll believe it when I'm scrolling through Instagram on my couch while truly charging my phone wirelessly.

因此等我能夠一邊「真無線」充電，一邊在沙發上滑 Instagram，我就會買單了。