Skip to main content

Future Motorola phones could wirelessly charge from up to 30 feet away

The dream of truly wireless charging has been around for some time now. Companies such as Energous release fresh concepts and information every now and then, while Xiaomi touted its Mi Air Charge tech earlier this year. Turns out, however, the first consumer product to support the tech may come from … Motorola?

The company has announced that it is partnering with GuRu, one of the companies working on truly wireless charging, to bring the tech to future Motorola smartphones. The joint press release, unfortunately, doesn’t note when the tech might become available — so it could still be a matter of years before it’s consumer-ready.

Recommended Videos

“At Motorola, we are constantly working to bring innovations to the market that can improve our consumers’ lives. With this solution, we will provide a glimpse of the freedom and flexibility that users can enjoy with a revolutionary over-the-air, wireless power technology,” said Dan Dery, vice president of product at Motorola, in a statement. “With GuRu, we imagine a new generation of wirelessly powered devices.”

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Of course, it’s important to not overreact to announcements like this. As mentioned, companies have been working on this kind of tech for years, but it still has yet to really become part of the consumer tech landscape.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

GuRu says that its RF Lensing tech is able to power devices from up to 30 feet away, using a propriety millimeter wave technology. This can be used to charge devices with batteries, like a smartphone, but eventually it could also be used to power devices that don’t have or need batteries — like, for example, a TV. It will likely be years before the tech can work like that, though, given the greater power demands of a TV compared to a battery-powered device that really only uses a lot of energy when it’s on.

To actually use the tech, you’ll need to install small base stations in the rooms that you want to wirelessly charge in. In GuRu’s concept, these base stations will be built into things like light fixtures, meaning they’ll blend into their environment. It remains to be seen how that will impact upgradeability — it’s a lot easier to replace a wireless charging pad today that it would be to replace a light fixture.

Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper is a long-time freelance writer who has covered every facet of the consumer tech and electric vehicle…
A new Motorola phone is coming soon. Here’s your first look at it
Motorola Edge 50 5G render in Jungle Green.

Motorola’s been pumping out new phones nonstop this year, and it doesn’t look to be stopping anytime soon. According to a report from 91Mobiles Hindi, Motorola is about to launch yet another phone in India: the Motorola Edge 50 5G. This first set of renders gives us a good look at what to expect.

The Motorola Edge 50 5G will have the unique title of being the world’s slimmest MIL-810 military-grade phone. However, the rugged phone features some interesting design choices that seem contradictory to a “military-grade” phone.

Read more
Two of 2023’s best Motorola phones are finally getting Android 14
Apps on the Motorola Razr Plus.

The Motorola Razr Plus 2023 Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

The Motorola Razr 2024 and Razr Plus 2024 were announced not so long ago, with both running Android 14. That's great for those who wanted to buy the new devices, but not so great for owners of last year’s models, the Razr 2023 and Razr Plus 2023, who had been waiting for almost a year without an update to Android 14 in sight.

Read more
Does the Motorola Razr 2024 have wireless charging?
Motorola Razr Plus 2024 in green lying on a table.

The Motorola Razr 2024 is officially out just in time for the summer, giving you two new folding phones to compete with the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6. There are technically two models: the base Motorola Razr 2024 and the higher-tier Motorola Razr Plus 2024, each with some variation in specs and design.

Now, you might be wondering if both phones come with premium features like wireless charging. The good news is that the answer is yes, though there are some caveats we’ll explore below.
Does the Razr 2024 have wireless charging?

Read more