Watts, GaN, PD, PPS — charger marketing is an alphabet of numbers that mostly do not matter. Here is the short version that does.
Watts are a ceiling, not a speed
A 65W charger does not push 65 watts into everything it meets. The device negotiates what it can accept — most phones top out near 25W, and only laptops use the headroom. Oversizing a charger is not wasteful; it is what makes one brick run your whole bag.
“Your phone decides how fast it charges. The charger only sets the ceiling.”
Why GaN matters
Gallium nitride switches faster and wastes less energy as heat than silicon, which is why a modern 65W charger is smaller than the 5W cube phones used to ship with. Cooler electronics also age more slowly — GaN chargers simply last longer.
The cable is half the system
Above 60W, the cable itself must carry an e-marker chip rating it for the current. A bargain cable silently caps a 100W link at 60W — if charging feels slow, suspect the cable before the brick.
- USB-C PD is the only standard you need to look for.
- PPS on the box matters mainly for Samsung's top charging speeds.
- Heat is the enemy: charge out of direct sun, case off for fast top-ups.
