Can use iPad 12W charger to charge iPhone 6s Plus without any risks?

Hi Lawrence,

Thanks a lot, it is a pity that you have not anymore the iPhone 6 to perform the temperature quick experiment with the 5W and 12W adapters; but if your iPhone 7 Plus is drawing 2A when the 12W adapter is used, it will be a very good candidate for this experiment.

I am fully agree with all your arguments and reasonings, really. Most probably it is more dangerous to play 3-4 hours to 3D hard intensive games (which I even don't do it) (in terms of overheating of the whole device and stress on it), that the probable small over temperature made of using the 12W iso 5W adapter.

In any case, I (and many other Apple community members) will be really thank you if you could make the experiment of using your precision laser temperature gauge next time that you have the chance to see which is the differential heat load for the 5W cube vs the 12 W adapter for your iPhone 7 Plus.

I suppose that we will need to wait you around 5 days at least before you can come back to tell us your outcomes (while you do your usual use of your 7+ and then the discharging-charging-discharging-charging cycles with both adapters).

We will wait impatiently. Thanks a lot in advance! 🙂

Well, the thing is that I think that from iPhone6 generation Apple allowed those models to draw more current from the Apple 12W adapter, but I don't know how much more.

Besides that, I am afraid that the iPhone6(s)Plus battery could begin to suffer sooner aging (reduce lifespan) due some kind of overheating (even minimal, but higher than compared with using original box Apple's 5W adapter), because usually more current transferred means higher temperature dissipation in the battery.

I cannot find any single official Apple support page where clearly Apple states that the quicker charging on the iPhone 6(s)Plus with the Apple 12 adapter is fully safe. Nor any Apple webpage where recommends this nice Quick Charging feature between the iPhone Plus owners. This is very strange. It looks to me and added value marketing feature, but Apple doesn't publish it?

I understand that they package the 5W adapter in the iPhone boxes because they are smaller, more handy, and cheaper to produce (more benefit margin in each iPhone sold); but why do Apple don't really recommend the 12W adapter openly? Pretty strange to me.

Apple only mentions it as "compatible" for iPhone6s(Plus), but doesn't recommend it nor says is the optimal solution above the 5W adapter.

Firstly thanks a lot by participating in this topic. Did you check (or notice) any difference in temperature (at back side of any of your both iPhone 6 or 7) when did you charge them with the 12W?

Any kind of overheating (even if small one compared with using the 5W adapter?)

If not done yet, may I ask you the next time that you charge your iPhones to try to charge the iPhone 6 with the 5W and the 7 with the 12W and take a look to their back respective temperatures, at least the first minutes when you begin to charge them, please?

(I don't know if you have any kind of temperature sensor to measure their backs during charging state to compare how affects to the iPhone 6 the charging difference from 0-80% between the 5W adapter (1A consumption) and the 12W adapter (1.5A), please.)

In any case, thanks by your contributions Lawrence! ;-)

Thanks by your sharing 'Gail from Maine', but on iPhones older than iPhone 6 generation, there is no difference at all, as I mentioned in the first post.

BTW, the iPhone7s Plus doesn't exist; which is your iPhone Plus model: 6s Plus or 7 Plus?

Thanks by your comment Philly, I really understand your concern. I simply ask it because most of the users would even not realize it about the impact of it (if it exists, which I still don't know, I will wait for Lawrence thermal tests on his 7+ device). This 'possible' impact on the battery lifespan (and consequently on its battery lifetime (number of recharging cycles is limited)); if there is any,... it will be only noticeable after maybe some months or maybe 1-2 years after using the 12W always as main charger. Because the hypothetical 'bad' damage in the battery lifespan would be very small (tiny in each recharge) (that is why maybe Apple could be saying that they are 'compatible' but Apple doesn't spread openly their use and promote them a lot in the community, because even small, could it be a 'risk'), but after 100 times recharging your iPhone 6 or higher, those tiny damages will really reduce the lifespan of the battery.

Most users will never notice, as most probable they will change their iPhones just after 2 years, for a newer model, or end of contract or because it become slower with more iOS updated features. But for users which want to keep the iPhones at least 3-4 years, it would be a real concern. And this is not hypothetical, as the iPhone 6s has not been discontinued this year, and that model will begin to have 3 years old for some users soon.

Dear Philly, I know that the easiest way for me would be to give up and go ahead only with the 5W adapter ;-) but I really want to understand it and find answers to my previous questions. Like for instance, 'why is Apple don't promoting explicitely its use since iPhone 6 of all is 'good and shiny advantages'?' They will sell plenty of extra 12W chargers, specially to all iPhone Plus users. But for some reason, Apple is not doing it. The battery lifespan has been always an issue in all smartphones (that is why Apple introduced this year the wireless capabilities on the iPhone 8 series, to make up the problem that most users need to recharge their devices every day, and that is quite unconvenient, simply because the battery technologies are still not capable to offer longer times and Apple had not other solution to keep thinner their devices).

In any case, I dont want to create a debate, just to know with some figures if any of the iPhone Plus models get noticeable overheated when they are recharged with the 12W adapter model (or maybe not?), and if possible to measure them with a temperature meter as Lawrence kindly offered to us to check on an iPhone 7Plus; but if somebody else could do it also in a iPhone 6sPlus or iPhone 6Plus, or even in the smaller iPhone 6, will be very welcomed. Thanks in advance!

Please Lawrence, I really ask you this small last favor, please. I suppose that we should not get surprising figures, but to finish the experiment that we (you) began, it will be very useful to check that last thing :-P

Really thanks a lot in advance by your kind help Lawrence.

(And to don't bother you more times, and in case you may be to be so kind to decide to make this last experiment with the 5W adapter: may you also at same time quick check the temperature change in the 5W adapter itself? I am hearing many people about the pretty bad building quality of it (Apple's 5W adapter), that it breaks easily after few months, and even it gets considerably hot; this last thing is also mentioned in its Apple's manual, although Apple officially states there that it is still in the safety surface temperature limits of IEC 60950-1).

By the way, the last third question: did you notice if in the Apple's 12W adapter (or any other higher power USB charger) also gets noticeable and very warm? (I will not bother you in this case to take temperature measurements of the 12W or 40W adapters, but thanks by your kind feedbacks :-P)

Really thank you, Lawrence!

Hi Lawrence,

Thanks a lot by your latest figures, they are really very useful! Really! 😊

I don't know how it will be in a iPhone 6 Plus (first supposed generation to support higher drawing current above 1A), nor the iPhone 6s Plus (second generation supporting quick charging but not openly officially promoted by Apple either); but at least with your iPhone 7 Plus it is pretty clear that the temperature impact of using the 5W, or the 12W with higher durrent drawed, is pretty small. (May I even allowed to say: Negligible? 🙂)

Then, and at least in the iPhone 7 Plus, I would say that charging it with a 12W adapter could it be called more as its 'normal' behaviour (iso 'quick charge'), and with a 5W adapter an 'slowered down mode' 😮; but of course, none company nor marketing department would allow to mention something like that 😉.

As mentioned before, I believe that the reasoning behind Apple to continue including the 5W adapter iso the 12W in all iPhone boxes until today, and not openly promoting that with the 12W would charge them faster, could be: increase profit margin in each iPhone sold, avoid iPhone packaging increased redesign (12W adapter is much bulkier), and then, still be able to carrier the same quantity (and not less) iPhones boxes per pallet, which also increases the benefits reduding the transportation costs.

Thanks a lot again Lawrence! Really appreciated! ➕

TK

Of course! It was a lot, really!

I will keep the post open to see if other users with the iPhone 6 Plus or iPhone 6s Plus could make similar measurements (power consumption and temperature variation between the Apple's 5W and 12W adapters) to have a full picture, because until today I didn't see any of your figures anywhere!

Thanks again Lawrence (and any other will be able to further contribute)! 🙂