Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0: What It Is and How It Works

As smartphone batteries become larger and more reliable, charging times are steadily decreasing. Modern smartphones use fast chargers equipped with smart circuits designed for rapid charging. These circuits are controlled by the Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 protocol, which efficiently manages voltage and power during charging. This technology is widely used in smartphones, USB wall chargers, and power banks. If you're unfamiliar with this protocol, sit back, relax, and read on to learn more.

What Is QC 3.0 (Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0)? 

Before we dive into the meaning of Quick Charge 3.0, let's first understand what is Qualcomm Quick Charge. Qualcomm Quick Charge is a fast charging standard developed by Qualcomm for smartphones, power banks, and wall chargers. With this technology, a QC3.0 adapter can work at varied voltage ranges to charge batteries much faster than conventional charging.

Quick Charge 3.0 (QC 3.0) is the third version of this technology. It allows charging devices to dynamically adjust voltage levels in 200mV increments, ranging from 3.6V to 20V. This flexibility helps deliver faster charging speeds by matching the ideal voltage needed for each device, unlike conventional chargers that rely on fixed voltage levels.

Today, smartphones have large batteries for which normal USB charging isn’t enough. Let's say you have a 5000mAh smartphone. To charge a battery this big, a 5W USB charger may take more than 6 hours.

Keeping your smartphone plugged in for that long doesn’t make any sense. In such a situation, Qualcomm’s Quick Charge comes to save you precious time. Qualcomm’s fast charging standard cuts the conventional charging time short by many folds. You can expect to get a 3000mAh battery fully charged in less than an hour. Also, 15 to 20 minutes of quick charging provides enough fuel to your smartphone to keep it up for an entire day.

How Fast Is Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0?

When it comes to charging your smartphone battery, Qualcomn 3.0 Quick Charge is designed to charge most smartphones' batteries to 50% in about half an hour. Now, it shows that Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0 version is 38 percent more efficient than Quick Charge 2.0 and twice as fast as Quick Charge 1.0. It is also four times faster than a 5W (5V and 1A) USB charger. To charge 50 percent of a 2750mAh lithium-ion battery, Quick Charge 3.0 only takes 30 minutes with a max power of 36W.

Below is a detailed table for better insight:

How Does Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 Work?

The Quick Charge 3.0 charger can communicate with the smartphone (when connected over USB) with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 charging protocol. The smartphone decides how much power it requires to charge the battery at any instant, then sends this information as a digital signal to the wall charger. On receiving this signal, the wall charger regulates the voltage and current.

When the battery is at zero level, the smartphone operates at a high voltage (less than or equal to 20V). As the battery gets charged, the voltage slowly drops. This communication remains active between the two devices until the battery gets fully charged. The gain and drop in voltage level don’t overheat the battery while charging. The battery temperature is actively monitored by the power delivery circuit which prevents overcharging and the risk of explosion.

Why You Should Consider Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0?

There are just a few of the benefits that come with having Qualcomn 3.0 Quick Charge technology in your device as follows,

1. Fast and Efficient Charging:Quick Charge3.0 is a fast, efficient, and reliable way to charge your device – up to four times faster than a standard charger. The technology intelligently adjusts power output for devices that support it, allowing them to charge significantly faster than other methods.
2. Power Savings:With the Qualcomm Quick Charge3.0 technology, you can save energy while charging your device since it only uses the amount of power needed at any given time. This allows you to save battery life and conserve energy when your device needs extra juice.
3. Temperature Control: Extreme temperatures can be harmful to your device and its components – especially when charging at high speeds. With Qualcomm Quick Charge3.0, the technology has safeguards in place that will detect the temperature of the device and adjust power output accordingly, allowing your device to charge safely without overheating.
4. Universal Support:Quick Charge3.0 is supported by a variety of devices including Android, Windows 10 Mobile, iOS, macOS, and more – so no matter what type of device you own, you’ll be able to take advantage of this technology.

Conclusion

From faster charging times to better temperature control, if you’re looking for an efficient way to power up your device without sacrificing safety or performance, then Quick Charge 3.0 may be just what you need. If you bought your smartphone somewhere near the end of 2017 then it is certain that it supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 even a Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0 or 5.0. Anyway, we hope this article will help you better understand and select Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 to enjoy safe and fast charging in life.

FAQ about Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 

What if your smartphone doesn’t support Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0?

Most modern smartphones equip some fast charging technologies. For example, OnePlus uses dash and warp charge, Oppo uses SuperVooC, Samsung uses its adaptive fast charging, Huawei uses supercharge, and Motorola uses turbo charge. So, you may still enjoy fast charging even if your device does not support Quick Charge 3.0, which may vary not that much in speed.

Do smartphones with other fast Charging standards support Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0?

Maybe not! Those smartphones featuring Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset may support Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0. While other smartphones may have their own fast charging standard and don’t support a Qualcomm-certified charger. For example, OnePlus uses dash charge as a proprietary fast charging standard for their smartphones. Charging a OnePlus phone with a Qualcomm Quick Charger may cause it to shut down or stop charging.

Is Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 safe?

Yes, Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 is safe. It actively monitors voltage and current to prevent overcharging and risks of explosion, ensuring a secure and efficient charging process.

Qualcomm 3.0 vs 2.0, what is the difference?

The main difference between Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 and 2.0 is the power and voltage management. Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0-certified smartphones use Intelligent Negotiation for Optimum Voltage (INOV), a charging protocol that lets your smartphone select any voltage between 3.2V to 20V. So, your smartphone can target a wide range of charging voltages with 0.2V increments without overheating the battery. While Quick Charge 2.0 usually operates at three variable voltages of 5V, 9V, and 12V only.

Does Quick Charge 3.0 require a special cable?

No, Quick Charge 3.0 does not require a special cable. However, to achieve optimal performance, a high-quality USB cable capable of handling higher currents is recommended.