Wireless charging pad useless. Any changes imminent?

[momo3605]

I know there are many threads Outlining diy fixes for the wireless charging pad, but I feel like this is something Rivian should be thinking about improving themselves. Has anyone reached out to their guide or CS or internal contacts about this?

I feel like there are relatively simple ways to fix the design, like putting ridges in the mat so the phone don’t slide around or something.

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[Ladiver]

I tether mine with a usb-c cable connected inside the center console.

 

[ravian]

Why is it useless?

 

[MNLightning]

Even more useless than the 16” screen. Doubtful it’s even on their radar. . But I’m hopeful

 

[MNLightning]

Why is it useless?

Do you have a truck yet? At best it does occasionally keep my phone warm, just not charged

 

[ravian]

Do you have a truck yet?

No, but when I drove it recently I tried charging my iPhone on the wireless charging tray and it did not charge the phone. At that time I did not think much about it as I thought that maybe there is a setting to turn it on.
seeing this thread made be suspicious that perhaps the whole thing is actually totally broken but hard to believe. Hence I asked to get a bit more clarification on this.

 

[RWerksman]

I feel like there are relatively simple ways to fix the design, like putting ridges in the mat so the phone don’t slide around or something.

I'm of the opinion that the wireless charger, as it's currently designed, is basically unworkable. IMHO there is too much space between the charging coils in the charger and the coil in the back of your phone. Assuming you have a case installed (any case, really) it's nearly a CM of space which is WAY too far for it to establish and hold a connection.

They could theoretically put some ridges or whatnot in the rubber mat to keep phones in place, but that wouldn't solve the problem at hand.

 

[ravian]

I'm of the opinion that the wireless charger, as it's currently designed, is basically unworkable. IMHO there is too much space between the charging coils in the charger and the coil in the back of your phone. Assuming you have a case installed (any case, really) it's nearly a CM of space which is WAY too far for it to establish and hold a connection.

They could theoretically put some ridges or whatnot in the rubber mat to keep phones in place, but that wouldn't solve the problem at hand.

That sucks big time.

 

[RWerksman]

That sucks big time.

100%

I have about a month of time into creating a Magsafe replacement for the charging pad. Initially, I was just going to make one for myself ... then I saw the response to my post and figured I had to produce more. Judging by the amount of people who have commented or reached out to me individually, it's absolutely a thing.

At the end of the day, the POS pad should just work. Ther should be no reason some putz on the internet has to hack a replacement together for it. The engineers from Rivian (or Delta, who I believe is the OEM for the pad) should be ashamed that thousands of them somehow made it into the field.

 

[nc10]

Do you have a truck yet? At best it does occasionally keep my phone warm, just not charged

My data point: I have an iPhone 11 pro max (no MagSafe). My wife has the 12 pro max (has MagSafe). The mat works ok with the 11 pro max. But it’s almost impossible to find a spot where my wife’s newer mag safe phone will charge. It’s just not workable for her phone.

 

[CommodoreAmiga]

My data point: I have an iPhone 11 pro max (no MagSafe). My wife has the 12 pro max (has MagSafe). The mat works ok with the 11 pro max. But it’s almost impossible to find a spot where my wife’s newer mag safe phone will charge. It’s just not workable for her phone.

My iPhone XS Max starts “charging” immediately when I place it on the mat, and it stays “charging” throughout my drive. The genuine-Apple leather case does a good job holding it in place under normal driving conditions. However, I put “charging” in quotes because, although it says it is charging, I do not gain any appreciable state of charge. I took a ~560 mile road trip over the weekend, and my phone didn’t gain any % SoC, even if on the pad for a couple hours. It didn’t drain, either…. But clearly it isn’t getting much power. I ended up going into a Walmart when I was at an EA DCFC and buying an Anker USB-C to Lightning cable…. Plugged in with that and within minutes I watched my SoC jump quite a bit.

So my initial impressions of the pad was that it “worked” but it really doesn’t, even if you the right combination of phone+case that will negotiate with the pad and stay “connected” there is still some serious flaw with the design.

I hope Rivian comes out with a redesign that is a drop-in replacement. I’d love for the warranty to cover it, but honestly, I’d even pay for a proper solution, at this point. I was really looking forward to wireless charging convenience.

 

[Kunzene]

I have an iPhone 11 and the charging pad in my truck works fine… these threads make me worry about upgrading to a newer phone

 

[cbuckley]

I run caseless and have no issues charging my iPhone 12 Max other than keeping it in place every time I turn. Definitely not a very useful item unless charging while in park.

The little slot in front of the pad isn’t so great either and seems like it’s a bit too shallow to keep the phone in place.

 

[prestapost]

The harsh reality is Apple has moved away from charging standards and is driving customers to their proprietary MagSafe charging. It’s how Apple does business.

The pad isn’t great to start with, but it’s heavily compounded, by Apple is actively working against standard wireless charging.

 

[MNLightning]

The harsh reality is Apple has moved away from charging standards and is driving customers to their proprietary MagSafe charging. It’s how Apple does business.

The pad isn’t great to start with, but it’s heavily compounded, by Apple is actively working against standard wireless charging.

Weird that my Ford Lightning doesn’t have the issue charging, or our Tahoe either

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