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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Jeremy Armstrong & Rachel Hains

The new tech that can charge your phone in just nine minutes - and will be available this summer

Many of us will be relieved to hear that soon our mobile phones could be able to recharge their batteries in just nine minutes. This is due to a new kind of battery power, developed by Chinese phone maker, Oppo.

Oppo, the fourth biggest firm globally, is behind the latest innovation and demonstrated its SuperVooc charging technique at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The firm said the new technology will be in devices by the summer.

The demonstration used 240 watts of power, showing a battery going from one per cent to 100 per cent in nine minutes. In comparison, a 150-watt version does it in 15 minutes.

The Mirror reported that most phones, including iPhones and Samsungs, can only take in around ten to 30 watts, since having too much power going into their batteries damages them. In fact, many firms have been held back over batteries overheating, which is dangerous as well as damaging devices.

Back in 2016, Samsung had to recall millions of phones after batteries overheated, damaging the device. The Korean giant recalled 2.5m handsets at a cost of billions of pounds as the damage also caused some devices to burst into flames after getting too hot.

According to Neil Monger, Oppo's UK product manager, Oppo's new technology has been in development since 2014. He told the Mail on Sunday: "It's not just about speed - it is also about doing it in a way that is safe for our customers.

"For example, if you just try to put more power into a battery without the relevant safeguards, it may cause longer term battery damage that causes it to degrade quicker over time. We test and test to avoid that."

He added: "If someone is keeping a phone for two or three years, they need to know the battery will last. A good battery will retain 80 per cent of its capacity after 800 charges. Ours do that after 1,600."

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