USB Fast Charging Protocols, Everything You Need to Know
We’ve been seeing these acronyms (e.g QC, PD, AFC, VOOC, BC, etc.) in labels and boxes of power banks, chargers and power stations. But what are these and what do they mean? Which of these protocols are compatible with my device? So here’s a little summary. First there’s USB-PD or PD and this is the major universal fast-charging protocol today. The others like QC, AFC, SuperCharge, VOOC are proprietary, brand-specific fast-charging technologies. While BCS/BC 1.2 is not actually a charging protocol but it defines basic rules of USB charging. In this article, we’ll discuss each of these fast charging protocols and how they work. USB-PD – Power Delivery (Open Standard, Universal) First we’ll start with USB-PD because this is the official fast-charging protocol today as defined by USB-IF. It is commonly referred to as PD (Power Delivery) which is open standard and universal, meaning it is not brand exclusive and makes it versatile. open standard, not brand exclusive, versatile can handle power up to 240W supports data transfer up to 10GBps only used for USB-C and recommended mostly for laptops and high powered devices PPS (an extension of USB-PD) PPS is known as Programmable Power Supply and and extension of USB-PD Proprietary, Brand Exclusive Protocols QC – Qualcomm QC is known as Quick Charge and was developed by Qualcomm for Snapdragon devices. Newer versions uses higher voltages (like 9V, 12V, 20V) instead of just 5V QC 1.0 – 5V/2A = 10W QC 2.0 – 5V/9V/12V (allows voltage switching) = up to 18W QC 3.0 – up to 18W (uses INOV, Intelligent Negotiation for Optimum Voltage, for dynamic fine-tuning QC 4.0 – up to 28W (based on USB-PD) QC 4+ – up to 28W+ (allows cooler charging) QC 5.0 – up to 100W (based on USB-PD PPS) AFC, SFC, SFC 2.0 – Samsung AFC is known as Adaptive Fast Charging and was developed by Samsung. It works similar to QC 2.0 and can handle up to 15W. SFC is known as Super Fast Charging and was also developed by Samsung. It uses USB-PD 3.0 + PPS to dynamically adjust voltage and current during charging. SFC can handle up to 25W SFC 2.0 can handle up to 45W SuperCharge – Huwawei SuperCharge was a fast-charging technology developed by Huwawei. In earlier versions, it prioritizes high current (amps) and low voltage. In later versions of SuperCharge, it added higher voltages for faster speeds. SuperCharge (First Gen) – 5V/4.5A = 22.5W SuperCharge 2.0 – 10V/4A = 40W SuperCharge 3.0 – 10V/4A (continued) SuperCharge 4.0 (SCP 66W) – 11V/6A = 66W SuperCharge Turbo (100W) – 20V/5A = 100W Apple 5V2.4A Apple’s 5V2.4A was Apple’s earliest charging technology wherein the typical output is 5V × 2.4A = 12W. It works by setting specific voltages on Apple chargers, then the iPhone or iPad reads these voltages to identify the charger as an Apple-certified “high-power” source. Once identified, the device allows itself to pull up to 2.4 amps at 5 volts. But today’s iPhones, starting from iPhone 8, mainly use USB-PD for real fast charging. VOOC, Dash Charge, Warp Charge, etc. – BBK Electronics (makers of Oppo, OnePlus, RealMe, Vivo) VOOC – Oppo VOOC 1.0 (5V/4A, 20W) VOOC 2.0 (improved efficiency) VOOC 3.0 (5V/5A, 25W) SuperVOOC (10V/5A, 50W → 65W → 240W) Dash Charge/Warp Charge – One Plus Dash Charge (rebranded VOOC 1.0, 5V/4A, 20W) Warp Charge 30 (5V/6A, 30W) Warp Charge 65 (10V/6.5A, 65W) Future versions based on SuperVOOC DartCharge / SuperDart Charge – Real Me DartCharge – works similar to VOOC SuperDart Charge – works similar to SuperVOOC FlashCharge – Vivo BCS/BC 1.2 – USB Battery Charging Specification BC 1.2 only defines the basic rules of how USB ports handle power and data. Dedicated Charging Port (DCP): No data, charging only (up to 1.5A) Standard Downstream Port (SDP): Data + slow charging (~500mA on USB 2.0) Charging Downstream Port (CDP): Data + faster charging (up to 1.5A) Things to Remember If a protocol is based on USB-PD (e.g Samsung’s SFC or QC 4.0), then the charging device becomes universal and can charge other brands. [Source: Medium]