Have you ever wished you can charge your phone without the need for an actual charger?
Ikea just announced its wireless charging furniture at the Mobile World Congress 2015 in San Francisco, California, joining smartphone manufacturers from around the world.
Charging smartphones may soon be a thing of the past. But while gadgets still require charging, manufacturers are looking for ways to make it easier for users to get and keep their smartphones' batteries full.
Swedish furniture manufacturer Ikea might look out of its league at the MWC, where gadget manufacturers such as Microsoft, Samsung, HTC, and Sandisk are in attendance for product launches.
Ikea did not introduce a new wearable or smartphone, but furniture pieces that can charge smartphones wirelessly, think bedside tables and lamps.
The company's smart line of furniture pieces, called "Home Smart," utilizes Qi wireless technology. The lamps and bedside tables are equipped with special charging pads, enabling wireless charging.
The smart devices that are to be charged wirelessly must also be compatibe with the Qi wireless charging technology. The user only needs to leave the smartphone next to a Home Smart lamp or furniture for fast, wireless charging, according to sources.
The popular Qi wireless charging technology is under the Wireless Power Consortium, which has top smartphone manufacturing members like Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Microsoft. Service provider Verizon Wireless is also a Wireless Power Consortium member. At the moment, there are over 80 smartphones that support the Qi wireless charging technology.
Tech aficionados are looking forward to getting their hands on devices that can be charged wirelessly. The concept is not new to those who have been following Korean tech giant Samsung and have been expecting the new breed of wireless charging smartphones to be available in the market.
Samsung's latest flagship phone, Samsung S6, for instance, does not come with a corded charger. The S6 can be charged on any compatible wireless charging pad, making Samsung once again one step ahead against its biggest competitor, Apple Inc.
Since wireless charging, like that of Ikea and Samsung, is still a fairly new technology, we are yet to know its cons. But it is very likely that every person who has a smartphone might no longer need to carry or even use a charger in the near future.
