Should I use wired or wireless charging for the Note 7?

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Hey folks, we’re back again with another guide to the Note 7. This time, we’re answering a common question: when should I use wireless charging, and when should I use normal, wired charging? There are some situations where one is clearly better than the other, so let’s go through them.

When wired is better

We’ll start off with situations where wired charging with a USB-C to USB charging cable and the mains adapter is the best way to go.

When you have only a little time to charge

Official Samsung Galaxy S6 / S6 Edge / Note 4 Adaptive Fast Charger

The first and most common time you should use wired charging is when you know you’ll only have a few minutes to charge your phone. If you look down near the end of the work day and your phone is at 10% battery, then you’re going to want to make the most of your limited time. The wired charger is faster than the wireless charger, so you’ll have more battery life remaining when it’s time to move on. The difference in charging speeds isn’t as much as it was before, thanks to Samsung’s fast wireless charger, but it’s still present.

When you’re running intensive apps or games

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Running Pokémon Go on your phone in a fixed location? You’ll probably want to plug into the wall if you can, as the combination of an always-on screen, GPS and Wi-Fi will drain your battery super fast. Of course, Pokémon Go isn’t the only offender; GPS navigation apps, 3D games and others can all drain your battery quickly. The more intensive the app, the more power your phone will use, and the slower it will recharge. If you’re charging from a USB port or wirelessly, you may even burn through more power than you collect. In this case, a USB cable connected to a mains charger (like the one bundled with the Note 7), car charger or power bank is your best bet.

When you want to connect to your PC at the same time

If you want to copy some files to or from your PC, then you’ll need to use a wire. You can recharge your Note at the same time, although most PCs will only provide a minimal amount of power (0.5A is a typical figure for USB 2.0).

When wireless is better

Of course, when you don’t need super-fast charging, you’re not running intensive games and you don’t need to connect to a PC, wireless charging makes a lot of sense. Take a look.

When you’re constantly picking up and putting down your phone

This is probably the biggest one — wireless charging is great for times when you’re constantly using your phone. With a wired connection, this is a big hassle – you’ve got to plug and unplug each time, or awkwardly use your phone at arm’s length because you don’t want to have to go through it all. With wireless, you just pick up the phone normally, use it, and put it down. No fuss at all, and it makes you feel a lot less tethered.

When you’re using the USB-C port for something else

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Another good reason to use wireless charging is that it frees up your USB-C port to do something else. There are tons of cool things you can do with it too, like connecting a gamepad to play a game the right way, plugging in a USB drive or SD card reader to copy some photos, or even connecting a USB-powered fan to cool down a little. We’ve done a whole article on cool uses for the Note 7’s USB-C port, so check it out!

When you’re showing off to your friends

As well as being practical, wireless charging is just cool. If you’re showing off your fancy new phone to your friends, co-workers or parents*, doing some casual wireless charging can be a nice way to show how far mobile phones have come.

* Please show off responsibly. Mobile Fun is not liable for any damage to your phone or relationships that may result.

Wrapping up

Thanks for checking out the article! I hope it helped you — if it did, please let me know in the comments below. Thanks again and enjoy your weekend!