Qualcomm's Quick Charge technology has been somewhat of a revelation in keeping our super-powerful devices charged up, and the latest iteration, Quick Charge 3.0, is debuting with the launch of phones running its latest processors. Phones like the LG G5 with a Snapdragon 820 support Quick Charge 3.0, but when it comes to the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, we're not so lucky.
Samsung's latest "Fast Charging" capabilities on the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge top out at Quick Charge 2.0 speeds, the same as the last generation of flagship Galaxy phones. Just take a look at the included wall charger and latest generation of charging accessories from Samsung and you'll get a hint of the fact, as they're all built to the same charging spec as last year.
The reason? It basically comes down to the fact that Samsung is using two different processors in the phones around the world, and they don't have the same charging capabilities. Even though the Snapdragon 820 processor, used in the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge in a few regions (such as the U.S.), is capable of supporting Quick Charge 3.0, a majority of regions around the world are running Samsung's own Exynos 8 processor, which doesn't support the feature. So for consistency's sake (and potentially licensing reasons), the phones are all kept on the same speed of Quick Charge 2.0.
Though it's always a downside to not have the latest charging technology in your brand new phone, Quick Charge 2.0 is hardly a slow. You're still able to add a good bit to your battery in just 15 minutes with the right charger or external battery, and if you're charging wirelessly with one of Samsung's Fast Charge Qi chargers you'll get faster charging speeds than other phones can offer as well.
Just don't expect to plug your new Galaxy S7 or S7 edge into a new Quick Charge 3.0-compliant charger and get the absolute fastest charging speeds — you'll be juicing up at the Quick Charge 2.0 rate.
