The best wireless charger you can buy

Qi wireless charging has been around longer than you might think. Google added wireless charging to the Nexus 4 and the Nexus 7 (2013) the following year. While it disappeared for a few Nexus and Pixel generations, Qi charging has become a smartphone staple. Even iPhones have used Qi charging since the iPhone 8 and X. Due to its widespread popularity, a vast array of wireless chargers are available. In my opinion, the best one comes from Samsung, and it’s the Wireless Charger Duo.

Price, availability, and specs

This is getting out of hand; now there are two of them

So that we’re clear on things, there are two versions of the Samsung Wireless Charger Duo. The first, which I no longer own, was released around 2018 or 2019. The one we’re reviewing today is the second generation, which came out in 2022 and is greatly improved.

The Wireless Charger Duo is available from Samsung, Amazon, and other retailers for an MSRP of $90, although it’s often discounted or bundled with a smartphone as a bonus item. The Duo has a fan beneath the main 15W charging pad that pulls air from the bottom and circulates it around your phone. The spec sheet doesn’t say what the output of the second pad is, but an educated guess would place it at 10W. A 25W wall charger is included, and if you use a lower-powered brick, the device will flash a warning if both pads are used simultaneously.

The second pad houses a magnet that can keep Samsung Galaxy Watches as far back as the Watch 3 and Watch Active in place while charging. Without this magnet, these watches would slide all over the place.

What’s good about the Samsung Wireless Charger Duo?

A lot, actually

I use wireless charging a lot; it’s how I charge my phone every night when I go to bed. I used the original Duo from 2019 to 2023; believe me, the 2nd generation is a vast improvement. Aside from looking better, which is subjective, this feels as if it’s made better. It has a quieter fan, is easier to clean thanks to the absence of rubber on the watch charging pad, and is more useful thanks to the magnet that replaces said rubber.

The cooling fan is a welcome feature. It’s almost silent, only audible if you get within a few inches of the pad, and it’s effective. Even during a heatwave of nearly 40°C (104°F in the USA), my phone was barely even warm after charging for a night. That means the phone and charger can maintain 15W peak charging speed for longer. Some phones out there can charge at higher wattages than that, but those are a rarity, with 15W being more common. My S24 Ultra can charge from about 20% to 100% in about an hour and a half. The Galaxy Z Flip 5 also supports 15W, but thanks to the smaller battery, it can achieve 20-100% in roughly an hour.

As mentioned earlier, we estimate the secondary pad to be 10W. That lines up with the wall charger in the box, but the Galaxy Watch 6 helps us determine that, too. Newer watches, like my Watch 6, support 10W charging, and it charges at the same speed on this pad as on the included charger. I’ve heard many complaints about using wireless chargers like this with smartwatches, as they tend to slide about, often resulting in a partially charged device. The magnet solves this, firmly holding your Galaxy Watch in the right spot.

That 10W secondary pad is helpful for wireless earbuds and other phones, not just watches. My 2023 Moto Razr+ maxes out at 10W on a Qi charger, so I could simultaneously charge my S24 Ultra and Razr+ at their respective full speeds, an hour and a half for the S24, as previously mentioned, and about two hours for the Razr. Of course, the devices in question will need to support Qi charging, rather than anything manufacturer specific outside of Samsung. The Pixel Watch, for example, uses charging pins, so that won’t work, but Pixel Buds, AirPods, and other Qi accessories will work just fine.

The Charger Duo’s design is also a bonus. The matte plastic is lightweight but still sturdy, and the rounded corners give it a softer look. I appreciate that the square primary pad has almost identical dimensions to a closed Galaxy Z Flip or Moto Razr, so when you place that phone on the charger, it fits right in the middle like it’s supposed to live there. The size is another strong point. The Duo is only 16mm thin, and the overall size and shape reminds me of a soap dish. It’s overall footprint is about the same as a Google Pixel 8a sitting in landscape. So, it’s easy to tuck it away somewhere.

I have one on my bedside table, and another on my desk behind my keyboard for quick top-ups when working or gaming. I think it was smart going with gray as it fits in nicely almost anywhere you put it. There is a white one available as well, but if buying Transformers all my life has taught me anything, it’s that white plastic likes to discolor over time, so I went with the gray.

There are two LED indicators, one for each pad. A green light indicates the device is full, solid red means it is charging, and flashing red means the device is misaligned or there is debris between the pad and the device. Flashing yellow indicates the power supply plugged into the pad isn’t sufficient.

Overall, this makes the Charger Duo one of the best wireless chargers, unless you’d prefer a setup for your car, like the ESR Qi2 Wireless Car Charger.

What’s bad about the Samsung Wireless Charger Duo?

The price

The Wireless Charger Duo is expensive. I think it’s worth the $90, so much so that I bought a second one at full price after the free unit I got last year impressed me so much, passing along my 1st-gen Duo to a friend. Thankfully, you’ll not often need to spend the full $90. It’s frequently discounted, especially on Amazon, and Samsung often bundles it as a pre-order bonus with new phones or watches; I got my first one with my Watch 6.

Although it is frequently available for less, and I believe it’s worth the $90 anyway, I’m still compelled to list that MSRP as a negative. Ninety dollars is a lot to spend on a wireless charger, and there will be unlucky users who pay full price for it.

The only other negative I can think of is that, thanks to the fan, it does attract dust, so you’ll want to wipe down the underside regularly.

Should you buy it?

To quote Emporer Palpatine: “Do it!” If you regularly wirelessly charge a device other than your smartphone, such as a watch or wireless earbuds, this is a convenient way to top up both simultaneously. The fan ensures that peak charging speeds can be maintained for longer without too much heat building up, and if you have a Galaxy Watch, this is a must have accessory. The $90 price point might be steep, but the frequent discounts and even freebies make it an easy product to recommend, whether you use a top Samsung smartphone or not.