AirPower

While Apple has been silent on the fate of AirPower, a new report suggests the wireless charging mat has entered production. ChargerLab claims that manufacturer Luxshare Precision has started production of AirPower, suggesting the product has not been canceled. A follow-up update from ChargerLab indicates that Pegatron is starting mass production on January 21.

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As the new year begins in Pacific Time, where Apple’s Cupertino headquarters are based, the AirPower charging mat has officially missed its 2018 release window.

The charging mat promised to charge iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods on a single compact mat with flexibility on where devices can be placed. However, the product has been rumored to have faced internal development challenges as late as this past summer, which prevented Apple from bringing the product to market as smoothly as it expected.

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Belkin’s Boost Up Special Edition Wireless Charging Dock for iPhone + Apple Watch (plus an extra USB port) is exclusively available through Apple or direct from the manufacturer. We’ve been testing out this charging solution and even if AirPower was available, it would give it a run for its money. Considering that AirPower’s future is still a mystery, follow along for why those holding out for Apple’s charging solution should consider Belkin’s take on a three-device charging station.

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As 2018 begins to wrap up, AirPower is still nowhere to be found. Earlier today, Zac outlined several possibilities for AirPower including a release sometime this month, Apple pushing the launch to 2019, or indefinitely delaying it. No matter the outcome, many eager iPhone users have become restless for some sort of update on AirPower’s fate.

Are you still waiting for AirPower or have you given up hope and turned to alternative solutions?

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Ah, the middle of December without a single update on AirPower from Apple in sight. That can only mean one thing: we’re just days away from some sort of big announcement about the fate of Apple’s magical wireless charging mat. Unless AirPower ships this month, I see three possibilities:

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While Apple’s AirPower wireless charging mat is still nowhere to be found, a recently published patent application from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office offers some details on a security feature of the accessory. The patent describes how a unique ID can be used to protect data transmitted between AirPower and the devices it is charging, and more.

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We’re one week away from Apple’s big October 30th event, and reliable supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of TF International Securities has some newsworthy predictions. Kuo summarizes previous predictions including his belief that AirPower is still debuting soon based on supply chain sources. The analyst also predicts Apple will indeed produce a new iPad mini…

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Noticeably missing from last week’s Apple event was AirPower, which was originally announced during the September 2017 event. AirPower is a charging mat capable of charging up to three devices simultaneously, but recent reports have suggested Apple has hit a series of engineering issues with the accessory.

Now, the iPhone XS packaging, as well as iOS 12.1, suggest that AirPower isn’t dead just yet.

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Apple infamously unveiled AirPower alongside the iPhone X and Apple Watch Series 3 in September 2017 with a vague ‘2018’ availability promise. In June, the product was still nowhere to be seen and Bloomberg reported on the major issues delaying the AirPower release, saying that the project had been pushed back to fall. With the September 2018 event now over, and even fewer mentions of AirPower on the Apple website, the prospects of the product being released in the last few months of 2018 are certainly bleak.

Sonny Dickson has published a report, citing Apple sources, that details three separate classes of problems that the company faced in bringing AirPower to market …

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While Apple made no mention of AirPower during today’s event, it looks like Apple may be launching AirPower later in 2018 than originally anticipated.

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Update: Apple is also no longer including the headphone adapter with iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 purchases.

With the launch of the iPhone XS and iPhone XR, Apple will no longer include the Lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter in the iPhone box. Further, Apple is continuing to include a 5W power adapter and Lightning to USB-A, as opposed to USB-C, and made no mention fo AirPower.

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The latest report suggests that Apple may finally be launching its long-delayed AirPower wireless charger next month.

What isn’t yet known is the cost, rumors so far pointing to somewhere in the $160-190 range. If that turns out to be rather more than you might want to pay, Zens has a new product that may make a suitable alternative …

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Apple unveiled AirPower publicly almost one year ago, but its special charging mat still hasn’t hit the market. That may change in a few weeks — maybe, we don’t know yet — but the absence of AirPower highlights something interesting. Apple hasn’t been able to ship a wireless charging mat that supports multiple devices from any position yet, but neither has Apple’s competition — despite pre-announcing AirPower a year ahead of time.

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Digitimes has today released a report that covers a variety of topics, focused on Apple’s September launch schedule. Quoting industry sources, the site says that Apple will launch a $1200 Kaby Lake ‘entry-level’ MacBook in September.

They also believe the iPad mini 4 will continue to be sold as-is, and expect Apple to announce the AirPower release date at the 2018 iPhone event, with a price point in the $160-$190 range …

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An unlikely-sounding report today claims that the next version of the AirPods charging case – designed to be wirelessly charged – could itself be used to charge an iPhone …

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Looking at Apple’s recent history of new product launches, it seems that delays are the norm rather than the exception.

AirPods were originally promised for late October 2016, and actually went on sale in mid-December. HomePod was announced in June 2017, promised for December 2017, and wasn’t actually available until February 2018. In both cases, Apple missed the all-important holiday gift season, which undoubtedly hurt launch sales.

The Mac Pro isn’t technically late, as the company said only that it would go on sale ‘after 2017,’ but it was announced in April 2017 and a year later Apple said it would be sometime in 2019 – which is a lengthy wait by anyone’s standards.

Then there’s AirPower …

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Apple’s AirPower charging mat was first announced in September alongside the announcement of the iPhone 8 and iPhone X, with an opaque ‘2018’ release timeframe. More than half way through, the product is yet to hit shelves. Bloomberg says that Apple had aimed to launch the accessory in June, but hit delays due to problems with overheating.

AirPower is much more complicated than a standard Qi charging mat. The report says the mat actually runs a stripped down version of iOS so it can manage power and complex circuitry, and communicate with the iOS devices, Apple Watch and AirPods that are laid on it.

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