 and it starts charging like magic, except it's real. But if you're actually looking to buy a charger for the first time, it can be a little intimidating. There's a whole bunch of specs you need to think about, stuff like wattage and how many coils it has, what charging speed looks like, what the form factor is, and it can just be really confusing to just go to the store and buy one, or go on Amazon and buy one. If you're looking to cut the cord, you might want to go to a store that has a lot of different types of charging systems, like the wireless charging system, go on Amazon and buy one. If you're looking to cut the cord for the first time, and again, you should, it's great, here's a couple things that you're gonna want to think about when you're buying a charger. First off, cheap. It's spelled QI, and it's the wireless charging standard. Your phone uses it, basically every charger out on the planet's gonna use it, but just double check to make sure it's there, you'll save yourself some time later. The most important spec for buying a wireless charger though is how much power can it push. Now, base charging for Qi starts at five watts, which is fine, but a lot of devices support fast charging. So Apple phones, like the iPhone XR or XS, can support up to seven and a half watts, which will charge faster, assuming your pad can support it. Samsung phones go up to nine watts. Some Android phones even go up to 10 watts. Pixel phones basically only just fast charge with a Pixel stand, which is a limit from Google. Sorry, Pixel owners. But generally speaking, you're gonna want to make sure that to get the fastest possible experience, you want at least 10 watts from any charger you buy. There's lots of different form factors out there for wireless chargers, and where you plan on using yours is probably gonna help determine what kind you want. So if you're planning on charging your phone by your desk a lot, you'll probably want a standing one where you'll easily be able to see the screen of your phone without craning over. If you're hoping for one by your bed though to charge overnight, you'll probably want a flat charger so that your phone isn't standing up and blinding you every time someone texts you at two in the morning. And if you're indecisive or just want the flexibility, there are pads that convert from flat to standing, so you can get the best of both. Another thing you might want to look out for when you're buying a wireless charger is how many charging coils it has. Now, there's two ways this can affect your experience. The first is for chargers that are still only meant to charge one device, but still have multiple coils. The advantage here is that having multiple coils will make it easier to find that sweet spot where it lines up and actually charges. On the other hand, there are also devices like Samsung's dual charger that have multiple separate coils so you can charge multiple devices at once. So if you have two phones or a phone and a smartwatch that you want to charge at the same time, that might be a good option for you. Most wireless chargers use a standard adapter to plug into walls, which is great. Most of them use micro USB or some newer ones, even USB-C, which is really useful because those are standard cables, which means that you can easily swap them out if you need a longer one or you break yours. But some chargers use weird proprietary ones or even have cables embedded directly into the device, which you probably will want to avoid unless you really can't. In that same vein, you're also gonna want to look at what kind of wall brick comes with your charger, if it comes with one at all. A lot of companies don't include a brick in the box, which can be frustrating because if you only have a five-watt brick for your 10-watt wireless charger, it won't matter that your charger can fast charge your phone because it won't have the power supply to do that. And if you're hoping to save money by buying a cheaper charger that doesn't come with a brick, just remember that unless you already have a high-watt charger with you, you'll probably end up just having to buy a new one anyway, which means you haven't really saved any money at all. Wireless chargers come in all sorts of weird shapes and sizes, materials and designs, so a lot of it also just comes down to personal preference. Do you like leather? Get a fancy leather charger. Do you like fabric? Get a fabric one. Do you want one that just charges your phone? Get a cheap plastic one. Now, obviously, there's gonna be some variation between chargers. Some will still charge slightly faster than others, but for the most part, if you follow this, you'll end up with a great wireless charger. Personally, my favorite charger is this RAVPower one, which we've written about over on ThisIsMyNext on the site. Thanks for watching, and be sure to subscribe to The Verge for more videos like this. Cool, clap once more.