How to Charge iPhone 12 at Fastest Speed

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iPhone 12 and the new iPhone 13 series phones support 20-watt USB-C fast charging. However, Apple no longer includes a charger and the 13 and 12 series iPhones come with just a USB-C to Lightning cable. If you plan to buy the fastest charging USB-C charger for iPhone 12, then best option is a USB-C charger that supports fastest 20-watt USB-C PD charging. This will charge the iPhone 12, 12 mini, Pro Max, 12 Pro from zero to 60% in just about 30 minutes.

A 20-watt USB-C charger will also fast charge the iPhone 13 series, all latest iPads and all older iPhones such as the iPhone 11 series, SE 2020/ XR/XS/XS Max/8/8+ at fastest possible speeds.

Here are all the ways to charge iPhone 12 fastest –

Charge iPhone 12 Faster with USB-C PD charger

iPhone 12 & 13 series support 20-watt USB-C PD fast charging and a high-quality USB-C PD charger with 20-watt or higher power output will charge the iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Mini at their fastest charging speed from zero to 60% in about 30 minutes. The iPhone 12 Pro Max gets charged to nearly 55% in 30 mins.

For charging only the iPhone, we recommend the Anker PowerPort III Nano, AmazonBasics 30-watt USB-C charger or the Apple 20-watt USB-C PD charger. If you often charge two phones (or an iPhone and an iPad) at a time, then a better option is a dual port PD charger such as Anker 40-watt PowerPort III  or AmazonBasics 36-watt dual USB-C port chargers. These charge an iPhone 12 and an iPad, or the iPhone 12 and a PD power bank, or any Samsung/Pixel/Android phone at the same time from a single power outlet.

iPhone 12 USB-C fast-charger
Anker Nano 20-watt PD charger weighs just 1.1 oz or about 33 grams!

If you have a Macbook Air or Pro, it is better to opt for a high output dual USB-C PD port charger such as ZMI 63-watt PD charger to charge the Macbook and fast-charge the iPhone 12 faster at the same time. ZMI 63-watt PD charger will charge latest USB-C Macbooks at 60-watt when charging the Macbook alone. When it charges the Macbook and iPhone 12 at the same time using both PD ports it will charge Macbook at 45-watt PD and the iPhone 12 at its fastest possible 18-watt PD. This is possible as ZMI 63-watt PD charger can output 45-watt PD + 18-watt PD from both PD ports simultaneously.

Another excellent high output dual PD port alternative for Macbooks and iPhone 12 is Anker PowerPort 60-watt dual PD charger . The Anker Charger charges Macbooks at high 60 watt PD output and charges iPhone 12 at 20-watt. It can also simultaneously charge Macbooks at 30-watt and fast-charge iPhone 12 at 20-watt.

For an even more heavy duty all-in-one charger for charging iPhone 12, Macbooks, and iPad at same time, AmazonBasics 100w PD 4-port Charger offers great features for charging as many as 4 devices at same time at fast speeds. With 2 USB-C ports and 2 USB ports, it can charge all your devices single-handedly.

The total 100-watt output of AmazonBasics 100w PD 4-port Charger can be dynamically distributed as –

  • When only one USB-C port is used, it can charge Macbooks or a USB-C laptop at maximum 100-watt (same as Apple Macbook Pro 16 charger).
  • When both USB-C ports are used, it can deliver max 65-watt PD from one port  and 18-watt from other (65-watt PD + 18-watt PD). This charges the Macbooks at pretty decent 65-watt and at the same time charge either an iPhone 12 or an iPad Pro at fast-charging speeds.
  • When all 4 ports are used at same time, AmazonBasics 100w PD 4-port Charger  can output 65-watt from one USB-C PD port, 18 watt from other, and a combined 17-watt from the two USB ports (6w+6w) with a total output of 100 watt.

In short, you can fast-charge a Macbook Air, an iPhone 12 Pro max and an iPad from the charger at the same time!

Despite its 102-watt output and 4 ports, the AmazonBasics 100w PD 4-port Charger adapter is compact at 2.75 inch x 2.75 inch x 1.8 inches and weighs just 7.3 oz (210 grams). It also has foldable pins for compact carry during travel.

Fast Charge iPhone 12 with USB-C PD Portable Chargers

USB-C PD portable chargers are another excellent option to charge the iPhone 12 at its fastest possible charging speed of zero to 50% in 25 minutes. USB-C PD power banks can fast charge all iPhones as well as all latest Samsung, Android phones, latest/upcoming iPhones and iPads, and even Macbooks.

Anker PowerCore Slim 10000 PD is currently our favorite pick as best compact PD portable charger for iPhone 12. The PowerCore Slim 10000 PD fully charges the iPhone 12 about two times or charge it from 20% to 100% about three times. The power bank can be fully charged in just 3.5 hours with any 18+ watt PD charger such as Anker PowerPort III Nano or the Apple 20-watt USB-C PD charger.

pd portable charger for iPhone XI and XRR
PowerCore Slim 10000 PD charges the iPhone 12 from empty to half in 25 mins & from 20% to 100% three times 

Two other great USB-C PD fast-charging power banks for iPhone 12 are ZMI Powerpack 10000 USB-C PD and Mi 10000 USB-C PD. Both have reliable build quality. ZMI 10000 PD has maximum output of 29-watt and can hence charge iPhone 12 at its max possible speed of 20-watts even though there is just about 5 mins charging time difference when charging to full between 18 and 20-watt chargers.

If you want extra power backup or want to charge an iPad or Macbook along with the iPhone 12, then higher capacity PD power banks will give you maximum TSA-allowed power backup.

ZMI 20000 PD 3.0 45-watt is a terrific high-output and high-capacity USB-C PD portable charger. It can charge Macbooks at 45-watt power output and will also fast-charge iPhone 12 at its fastest 18-watt PD charging speed. ZMI 20000 PD 3.0 45-watt will fully fast-charge any iPad fully one time and still have enough capacity remaining to charge the iPhone 12 fully once. It will also fast-charge the latest PD enables iPads such as iPad Pro 11/12.9, iPad mini 5 or iPad Air 3.

Anker PowerCore Essential 20000 PD and AmazonBasics 20000 PD are slightly more compact power banks but are only good for fast-charging iPhones/iPads (not Macbooks) as they have maximum 18-watt PD charging speed. To charge these 10000 or 20000mah PD power banks in lowest possible time (4-5 hours), we recommend only using PD chargers such as  Anker 30-watt PowerPort Speed Duo charger   or Anker PowerPort III Nano  or the AmazonBasics 30-watt PD charger. Of course, another huge advantage of PD chargers is that you can use them directly to charge iPhone 12 to 50% in 25 mins.

Best USB-C PD power bank for iPad Pro 12.9
PowerCore Essential 20000 PD is a compact USB-C PD power bank

If you require the maximum possible TSA-allowed capacity portable charger with USB-C PD output for iPhone 12 and Macbooks/iPads, we recommend AmazonBasics 26800 PD 45-watt or the Anker PowerCore PD 26800 45-watt (better for Macbooks). Both these massive capacity PD portable chargers get charged in just around 4 hours with a 30-watt PD charger such as any Macbook 29/61/87 watt charger or the Anker 30-watt PowerPort Speed Duo charger .

Charge iPhone 12 faster with Macbook USB-C port

If you have a MacBook Air or Macbook Pro with USB-C ports, you can charge the iPhone 12 at its fastest supported speed by connecting the Macbook to the iPhone 12 with the USB-C to Lightning cable that comes with the iPhone 12 phones.

Fast Charge iPhone 12 with iPad Pro 11/12.9, iPhone 12 Pro/Max chargers

The iPad Pro 11 or 12.9 2020/2018 come with an 18-watt Apple USB-C PD charger and you can use this charger to fast-charge the iPhone 12 from zero to 50% in 25 minutes. The latest iPad mini 5 and iPad Air 3 also support 18-watt USB-C PD charging and can also be fast-charged with the iPad Pro 2020/2018 (11 or 12.9) chargers. iPhone 11 is the only phone in Apple’s 11 series that does not come with a 18-watt USB-C charger in box. The Apple USB-C power adaptors that come with the new iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max will also charge the iPhone 12 faster.

Charge iPhone 12 faster with 2.4 amp chargers or power banks

fast charger for iPhone
Anker Elite 24-watt dual port charger will charge iPhone 12 to 50% in about 1 hour

While the fastest charging speed (zero to 50% in 25 mins) for iPhone 12 can only be achieved with PD chargers or PD power banks, the iPhone 12 can also be charged at less fast speed (zero to 50% in about 50-60 minutes) with any 12-watt (or 2.4 amp) chargers. This makes sense only if you already have a USB-A to Lightning cable with you as the USB-C cable that comes with the iPhone 12 phones will not fit in the old USB-ports of these older chargers.

Charge iPhone 12 faster with Samsung or Android Phone Adaptors

USB-C adapter for iPhone 12 Mini
Samsung Note 20/10, S20 series adapters will also charge iPhone 12 at fastest speeds

While it is a good idea to go for dedicated USB-C chargers for iPhone 12, you can also use latest as well as older older Samsung/LG/Moto/Pixel and other Android phone adapters to charge iPhone 12 fast. Latest Samsung/LG phones & all Pixels come with USB-C PD chargers that will charge iPhone 12 at its fastest speeds of empty to 50% in 30 mins. Older Samsung/LG/Moto phones come with Quickcharge compatible phone chargers. All these older Samsung/Quickcharge power adapters (since 2015) support 2.4 amp charging for the iPhone 12 and will charge the iPhone 12 phones at speeeds of about zero to 50% in about 1 hour. This is almost half as fast as USB-C chargers or USB-C power banks but still more than twice as fast speed as old Apple 5-watt charger that you may have.

If you already have Samsung/Android phone chargers available and/or if you need a cost-effective faster charging solution for the iPhone 12, then these chargers are a good standby charging solution for iPhone 12 phones till you get a USB-C charger. Just keep in mind, that a good USB-C charger will cost just around $10 and charge in half the time. We recommend Aukey Swift 18-watt USB-C PD charger as ultra-low cost USB-C charger for iPhone 12.

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