Samsung Says Its Galaxy S25 Is ‘Qi2 Ready.’ Here’s What That Really Means

Apple’s MagSafe technology is my favorite smartphone innovation of the past five years—it has changed how I use my phone. The Qi2 wireless charging standard introduced in 2023 was supposed to bring the same magnetic charging marvels to Android smartphones, as well as enable wider compatibility of accessories between iPhone and Android—which would have been most welcome. Sadly, after two years, there’s only a single Qi2 Android phone out right now.

You’d think Samsung, in its never-ending quest to outshine Apple, would finally debut Qi2 on its new Galaxy S25 series—announced earlier today—but unfortunately that’s not the case. The Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra support the Qi wireless charging standard, however, Samsung says they are “Qi2 Ready.” This is a workaround that brings full Qi2 functionality to these phones via magnetic cases. It’s a bit complicated, so let me break it down.

The Promise of Qi2

We have a Qi2 explainer here, but to boil it down, it’s the next stage of wireless charging, and it takes inspiration from Apple’s MagSafe charging system. (Apple helped develop the Qi2 standard, and every iPhone since the iPhone 12 is now officially a Qi2 device, excluding the iPhone SE.) A ring of magnets inside a Qi2 phone can magnetically connect with a Qi2 wireless charger, allowing for precise energy transfer that makes wireless charging faster and more efficient.

My wife still complains when her Qi phone doesn’t charge overnight because she didn’t align it juuuust right on the charger. Well, that is not a problem with Qi2, because magnets! Jesse Pinkman said it best.

That isn’t the only reason I like having magnets in my phone—the MagSafe system has opened up a world of magnetic accessories you can attach to the back of the device. At CES 2025, a part of my content workflow involves using a MagSafe camera cage for my iPhone, which I can magnetically pop on the mount without fussing with a clamp.

With every electric scooter and ebike I test, I pop my phone onto Peak Design’s magnetic bike mount—an elegant solution far nicer than pulling silicone bands over my phone to keep it secure on the handlebars.

I also very much enjoy placing my iPhone on my MagSafe car dock. Clamps are annoying, OK? If they weren’t, why would accessory maker iOttie sell a car mount that automatically opens the clamps so you don’t have to fuss with them? Clamps suck!

This is why I desperately want Qi2 to make its way into more Android phones, so I can natively use them with all these magnetic accessories—case or not.

What’s “Qi2 Ready”?

Two years is apparently not enough lead time for Samsung to get its act together and add Qi2 to the Galaxy S25, but there’s a stopgap measure. A bevy of “Qi2 Ready” cases will add complete Qi2 capabilities to the Galaxy S25. Samsung doesn’t have to redesign the phone to add magnets, because the case is doing the hard work. (Qi2 Ready cases will be available from Samsung and third parties.)

These Qi2 Ready cases are certified and tested with Qi2 Ready phones so you can be sure that a Galaxy S25 with a Qi2 Ready case will work with a Qi2 charging accessory, whether that’s a Qi2 power bank or a Qi2 wireless charger. (How many times can I write Qi2 in a sentence?) Paul Golden, director of marketing at the Wireless Power Consortium, the organization that manages the charging standard, tells me this system enables the same Qi2 charging speed and same energy efficiency. “It’s a faster way, an easier way, for a company to offer a Qi2 experience without having to make that big change.”

This is important because, while we MagSafe lovers have made do with MagSafe Android phone cases these past few years, there’s always been a caveat that these cases may not work with all MagSafe products. With Qi2 Ready cases, you can rest easy knowing they’ll work with Qi2 chargers.

It’s worth noting that OnePlus’ latest flagship phone, the OnePlus 13, is not a Qi2 Ready phone, however, OnePlus sells a magnetic case to enable Qi2-like charging. This is the old approach of adding magnetic charging to phones with basic Qi support, and it will not turn your phone into a Qi2 device. While it may feel similar, you may not enjoy faster charging speeds, it will not be as energy efficient, and it’s not guaranteed to work with all Qi2 accessories. Golden says Qi2 Ready phones have “special features built into them” to enable proper Qi2 functionality when paired with a Qi2 Ready case.

Alas, as soon as you take these Qi2 Ready cases off the phone, the magnetic functionality disappears. This may not be a problem for most people. It’s hard to find recent statistics, but a 2023 YouGov survey found that roughly 68 percent of Americans use a phone case, and a 2017 study put that number at 79 percent. But it does stink for those of us who don’t like using a case. Pour one out for the case-less fiends.

I can recall dozens of times when I’ve had to take my iPhone case off to attach a wireless microphone to the USB-C port or to fit the phone on a gimbal. Removing the case didn’t change anything because iPhones have magnets built in, but this is something that will impact Qi2 Ready phones, and it’s a frustrating limitation.

I think Qi2 Ready phones are an acceptable in-between measure. Considering it’s cheaper than embedding magnets into a phone, I hope it means more budget and midrange smartphones can enjoy Qi2 capabilities.

Still, I worry that this will make things confusing for the average person. New phones will support Qi but not Qi2, but they’ll have Qi2 Ready cases to enable Qi2—my brain hurt just writing that. If they just had native Qi2 support, magnetic charging would work all the time with any Qi2 accessory. Easy peasy.

The good news is that Samsung and Google have committed to releasing official Qi2 Android phones in 2025, so it is on the way, though it does feel bizarre that Samsung may not end up debuting it on its flagship smartphone series.

I’ll make do with a magnetic case (again), but for the love of God, can someone just give me my magnetic Android already?