Oppo's new charging tech decreases battery capacity at a concerning rate

Oppo’s 125W Flash Charge may be great if you want to top up your phone in a hurry, but that performance could come at the cost of long-term battery life.

The company noted that the battery capacity is “maintained” at 80% after 800 full charge and discharge cycles at 125W. In other words, you may lose a fifth of your capacity in just over two years if you completely drain your battery every day. You’ll realistically last longer if you still have some charge left at the end of each day, but there’s chance you’ll notice the effect. Of course, lighter users will take longer to reach that 800-cycle mark.

Either way, OPPO’s new tech degrades batteries faster than we’ve previously seen.

This appears to be significantly worse than with earlier wired charging tech. OPPO previously reported that its 65W charging reduced a battery’s capacity to about 91 percent after 800 cycles. That’s still significant, but might not have a tangible effect during the useful lifespan of your device.

This doesn’t come as a complete surprise. High-power charging puts added strain on a battery, and OPPO had to adopt a higher-quality battery design that could handle the whopping 12.5A of current from the 125W charger. It does, however, suggest that existing fast-charge technology may be reaching its limits.

This isn’t the only new fast charging option, thankfully. OPPO is also offering 50W and 110W mini-chargers that shouldn’t affect your battery as much. Also, the full charging speed only applies to phones compatible with OPPO’s technology — other devices will last longer if you’re using more universal formats like USB Power Delivery or Qualcomm’s Quick Charge. And if you’d rather minimize recharging in the first place, there are always battery saver apps to make the most of your device.

Next: OPPO Find X2 Pro review: Fast, fashionable, and fantastic