Qi Wireless Charging

I have an old Nexus 5 that supports wireless charging that will charge in my Prius. If you are using the phone for Google maps or anything where the display is on constantly, it would keep up. The battery will drain and die, at least the this phone. I need to use the usb cable.

 

My experience is that the the battery cooks when using the car Qi charger. I have a home Tylt charger, and I can position it carefully to avoid excessive heating, but the one in the car sends the battery temperature through the roof, no matter how I try to tweak the positioning. And doesn't really get that much charge. So if I am using Google Maps to get real-time navigation guidance, I just use an old fashioned wired car USB charger.

 

What's old is new again...

 

Mr. Pakitt,
If my S7 is moved just 1/2 in or so off of dead center, the charging stops. Also to reestablish charging, you frequently have to turn off and then turn on the charger. This system is FAR from perfect. As mentioned by others, it puts out a very low level trickle charge. On a 10-15 mile trip, you're lucky to get a 5% improvement in charge level.


.

 

I'm not sure how that translates into power, but I get 15 watts (5V * 3A) using a USB-C charger in the 12v socket. Since my phone has a 13 Wh battery, at a lower SoC without taper 15 minutes would be about 30% charge (4 Wh into battery)

Ps: So far as I can tell, phone batteries operate at ~ 3.85 V

 

Yes. I have an S7 also. I have the same problem. The charger connects and disconnects even without bumps or curves in the road. It also makes the phone very hot. I figure all that heat can't really be good for the phone over time so I gave up on it. I just plug it in to charge and I got a tray type thing that fits over the charger so I can use the space.

 

Remember that there's more to fast charging than available current. Qualcomm Snapdragon processors have a power negotiation protocol in place that allows a higher charging voltage, thus faster charging, on an 'adaptive fast charging system'. The charger that you plug into the car must be an adaptive fast charger to gain the speed in charging and have the 'fast charging' message displayed. A charger built for tablets (because it shows a 2.5 amp outlet) will not charge your phone any faster. It MUST be an adaptive fast charger that supports the standard.

 

Its slow and inefficient, but a cool feature to brag about. Its a great place to keep your phone if you don't have pockets too.

 

I put an S8+ in my prime advanced and it didn’t fit so I bought the S8, and it charges magnificently, I also use one at home, not a fan of plugging in the other style, prefer the wireless.

 

FYI - My Galaxy Note 8 doesn't work well with the Qi charger -- the phone is about 1/4" too tall and the lip around the charger pad raises the tip of the phone above the surface. Bummer.

 

Agree. Mine will not charge at all in the Prime.

 

I have a Galaxy S8+. I use a very thin Gel Case for it to wirelessly charge in my car. I have no problems unless i Position it wrong. One note, you must have the bottom part of the phone touching as it needs to tilt downward so it will charge properly. Any bigger a phone will not charge right in it. I had an S7 Edge previously and my case was too thick. Other than that it charged fine.

 

when charging my iPhone X, the yellow charge light occasionally flashes as an indicator that it has stopped working … for whatever reason I press the power off and on again, it starts charging the phone again without any movement off center etc. it somehow just stops at random. AND most concerning, when I get out of the car and take the phone, it makes it hot, and the operating system gets sluggish and unstable. I have to wait it out (kill all apps and let the phone rest) or reboot the phone altogether to be back up and running normally.

In conclusion, the wireless charger in the Prius Prime is incompatible or essentially too cheap to work well. My nightstand qi charger works great, my desk charger works great.. just my Prius charger causing these issues.

 

Has there been any kind of software update done to the alleviate the loss of connection issue and/or high temp issue? Or are these issues inherent to the poor Qi charger hardware used in the current Prime's? Will the new 2019 Prime's have an upgraded Qi charger?

I would really like to just drop my phone have it charge on longer trips and use the phone for calls. I don't use Waze, Google Maps or anything like that when driving so a slow charge is fine but it needs to actually work. It currently doesn't with my iPhone 8 or my wife's iPhone X. We can be sitting in the garage not moving and it drops out on both phones. Whether the phones are in cases or not. And other times it will charge for 20-30 minutes on trips no issue. Really poor design apparently.

Happy driving,
Chris

 

I’m not aware of any software updates, which Toyota would ordinarily disclose in a technical service bulletin.

Perhaps more importantly, the Electrical Wiring Diagram (more info) doesn’t show any connections to the mobile wireless charger cradle assembly through which a software update could be downloaded in the field, at least not in the usual way with a Toyota Techstream diagnostic system attached to the car’s DLC3 diagnostic connector. The connector for the cradle assembly has twelve terminals, of which six are used for power (ACC, +B, and illumination), ground, and the DIS (disable) signal, but there are no wires connected to CAN or other multiplex buses. Conceivably an unused terminal might be wired to a serial or I²C line, for example, that would allow reprogramming, but Toyota dealers don’t presently have equipment for this purpose.

Considering the cost of an update or hardware replacement, unless the cradle assembly were shown to be unsafe or non-compliant with regulations, I wouldn’t expect any changes for existing vehicles.

The Owner’s Manual for the 2019 Prius Prime lists the same Panasonic model number for the charger (CA-QS05H3AJ) as in previous years.

 

Yeah the Qi charging in the Prime is pretty slow. However the main issue is that wireless charging heats up the phone a *lot* more than wired charging does and this kills the battery longevity. Stick with wired charging for both faster and healthier charging. The Qi charger in this car is just a huge gimmick.

Another annoyance is how you can't place the phone in that area while it is connected with a wire (no place for the wire to come out of the area).