iPhone 17 Pro skips reverse wireless charging: Here’s why

Apple iPhone 17 Pro

In the run-up to the iPhone 17 Pro launch, one of the most talked-about rumours was the addition of reverse wireless charging. Apple’s new design this year, featuring a centred logo on the rear glass panel, looked like the perfect opportunity to finally enable this feature. With bigger batteries inside the new models, many Apple fans felt it was the right moment. Yet when the Apple Event concluded, there was no mention of reverse wireless charging.

The absence of the feature may feel like a letdown, but Apple’s decision has a logical explanation.

Reverse wireless charging is difficult to combine with MagSafe. Apple did make an early move towards power sharing with the MagSafe Battery Pack introduced alongside the iPhone 12, but that worked due to the precise magnetic alignment the accessory offered. That alignment ensured power transfer without interference. Attempting to extend this same capability to AirPods or even another iPhone would not be as straightforward. Unless those devices can snap onto the back with the same perfect fit, the power flow can be inconsistent and inefficient.

Magnets are both the enabler and the obstacle here. MagSafe allows accessories to lock firmly in place, but the strong magnetic system also creates interference when trying to reverse charge devices that aren’t built for this type of alignment. The result would be unreliable charging speeds, wasted power, and a frustrating user experience — something Apple is unlikely to accept.

The situation becomes clearer when looking at Google’s recent decision with the Pixel 10 series. The company adopted Qi2, a standard that functions similarly to MagSafe and is now recognised as the future of wireless charging. But in making that shift, Google had to abandon reverse wireless charging, a feature it had supported for several generations of Pixel phones. This move highlights that integrating magnetic alignment and reverse wireless power transfer is still technically problematic.

For users, the idea of quickly topping up AirPods or giving another phone a boost sounds useful in theory. In practice, the limitations make the feature less appealing. Having to carefully align devices or accept extremely slow transfer rates would not match Apple’s usual promise of seamless functionality.

So, while the rumour surrounding iPhone 17 Pro created excitement, the reality is that reverse wireless charging is unlikely to appear on iPhones any time soon. As long as MagSafe remains central to Apple’s design language, the trade-off means reverse charging will stay off the table.