Wireless charging has stuck around, despite the fact that, compared to its wired counterpart, it’s slower, less efficient and there’s the chance that you might incorrectly place your phone (or other wireless-charging compatible devices) and not charge it altogether. Still, however, the technology persists. And Belkin has tried to make it a little less awkward.
Wireless chargers are available almost everywhere now. Even Ikea makes them, while companies like Huawei have improved the wattage for almost-passable wireless charging speeds. Belkin’s TrueFreedom Pro Wireless Charger ($130) is a charging mat that sidesteps the issue of having to precisely position your devices. It does so by stacking 16 Charging coils across the mat, meaning it can charge your gear as long as it’s, pretty much, somewhere on the surface. It can also handle two compatible devices simultaneously, whether they’re iPhones, Pixel phones, wireless headphones or even your electric toothbrush.
The TrueFreedom Pro is understated and stylish (if a phone charger can be stylish), with a black matte surface and chrome trim. Nothing interrupts this surface, barring the port for powering it, although it’d be nice to have a USB-A or USB-C port to charge non-Qi compatible devices. A lot, if not most, of the bigger wireless chargers have them, and at $130, it feels like Belkin cheaped out here.
Most of Belkin’s rivals don’t have overlapping charging coils, however, and the best thing is how incredibly forgiving placement is on this thing. Not only does it work if your phone is slightly off-center, but it can also be charged on the far edges, so long as enough of the wireless charging components can interact.
Alongside the familiar vibration or LED light-up when your gadgets start wirelessly charging, the mat has two LEDs along the edge to indicate when devices are being powered up. I wish they’d gone for something to light up along the upper edge of the charger. If you decide to position the mat lower, say on an armrest or a low shelf, then it’s easy to miss the indicator light.
And you might want to pay attention. I tested several phones and devices that charge wirelessly, including two sets of AirPods, an iPhone 11 Pro Max, Pixel 5, iPhone 12 Mini and some older phones from OnePlus and Huawei, and the mat could handle charging combinations of any of the above. With an iPhone 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max, however, I got the first appearance of the amber light — meaning a device wasn’t correctly charging. With some cajoling, I did manage to get a sustained charge into the iPhone 12 Pro Max, but it defeated the purpose of this charger.
I checked in with Belkin, which said that ”testing for all iPhone 12 models is still being conducted.” It added that the TrueFreedom Pro was designed for the iPhone 8-11 “only” — these are the models noted on the box. I wonder if MagSafe is affecting those multiple coils — magnets and inductive charging use the same rules of physics.
No, the TrueFreedom Pro can’t charge your Apple Watch or many phones, like the Pixel 4a or OnePlus Nord, which lack wireless charging to begin with. There are also, still, those typical caveats of wireless charging, namely that it’s inefficient and slow — although 10 watts of charging is better than early 5W wireless chargers. The accusation of inefficiency is especially true here — all those coils to charge just two devices?
The TrueFreedom Pro is a better wireless charger though. It accommodates more devices, meaning you could (slowly) charge a guest’s phone alongside your own, and there’s no need to align it or double-check that it’s charging like it should be — iPhone 12 Pro woes aside. I wished all wireless chargers were this accommodating.
