One of the more useful new features in the iPhone 15 is support for the new Qi2 wireless charging standard, which enables you to charge at up to 15W on compatible wireless chargers. But you don't need to buy a brand new iPhone to use it; all you need to do is wait a few days and you'll have the same feature on any iPhone 13 or iPhone 14 too.
The feature is coming in iOS 17.2, the next point release of Apple's iPhone operating system and which is currently in the beta stage known as Release Candidate, or RC for short. RC means that the software is pretty much finished and just needs a final kick of the tyres before it's made available to everyone.
What is Qi2 and why should you care?
Until the iPhone 15 came along, the only way to get 15W wireless charging on an iPhone was via Apple's proprietary MagSafe tech. Qi2 is pretty much the same thing, but it's an open standard – so you don't need to have Apple-approved kit provided it meets the international standard. That means more choice and most likely lower costs too.
The update was spotted in the iOS 17.2 release notes by 9to5Mac, and it's not the only big change: the much-promised Journal app for tracking your daily adventures and moods is there too, and there's a new Action Button choice for the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max that enables you to call up the translation app. You can also capture spatial video for the Vision Pro on the 15 Pro and Pro Max.
Other changes are relatively minor but still worthwhile: you can log Health data via Siri; there's better AirDrop for sharing tickets and boarding passes; the Weather app is more informative and there are improvements to Messages including memoji updates and Contact Key Verification to ensure you're not talking to a convincing fraud. AutoFill in PDFs and forms is more useful, and there's a new digital clock widget for your home screen and in Standby mode.
iOS 17.2 is nearly ready and should be available shortly via Software Update.
