realme’s new 320W charger can fully charge a phone in just 4.5 minutes

realme, a smartphone brand under China’s BBK Group, has set a new record with the world’s fastest charging technology—320W SuperSonic. The company demonstrated this technology by fully charging a smartphone with a 4,420mAh battery (similar in size to the iPhone 15 Pro Max) in just 4.5 minutes. If you’re in a hurry, just one minute of charging provides 26% battery, and 50% can be achieved in under 2 minutes.

These impressive speeds are made possible by several key innovations announced at an event in Shenzhen, China. realme has managed to increase the power of its previous 240W charger to 320W without physically enlarging it. The upgraded charger, dubbed the “Pocket Cannon,” now includes two USB-C ports capable of delivering 150W to realme smartphones and 65W to devices like laptops.

Another key development is the shift to a folded battery with four cells, each less than 3mm thick, which offers a 10% increase in capacity compared to traditional designs.

Inspired by satellites (yes, from space), this design allows the company to pack more individual battery cells into the compact dimensions of a smartphone. For comparison, Apple and Samsung smartphones currently use single-cell batteries that generally offer larger capacity, while companies like OnePlus and realme use dual-cell batteries that enable faster charging times.

The intricacies and complexities of the technology are succinctly explained in a 3-minute video, which ends with an impressive demonstration showcasing all the impressive numbers mentioned. In simple terms, realme claims that this breakthrough in fast charging would not have been possible without the invention of the “folded battery” design. And if it sounds risky, don’t worry—realme reassures that the solution relies on another innovative technology called “AirGap Charging,” which creates a separation between high voltage and the battery cells.

Earlier last year, realme launched the GT Neo 5, which was the fastest-charging smartphone on the market at that time, with 240W capabilities that could charge its 4,600mAh battery in nine and a half minutes. Less than a month later, another Chinese phone maker and Xiaomi subsidiary, Redmi, announced a 300W fast-charging technology, which managed to charge a 4,100mAh battery in about five minutes during demonstrations.

So far, Redmi’s 300W charging technology has not been integrated into any of the company’s devices, and for now, the same applies to realme’s new 320W technology. The company has not revealed which smartphone was used during its demonstration and has not provided details on future devices that will feature the new SuperSonic Charge and the four-cell battery.