Ikea Furniture Will Charge Your Phone, Wirelessly

The future is wireless, and furniture maker Ikea is jumping on the bandwagon. The Swedish company unveiled a new line of furniture that will wirelessly charge your phone.

Ikea revealed their new line at the Mobile World Congress, a consumer electronics show currently underway in Barcelona, Spain. The furniture makers are partnering with the Wireless Power Consortium, incorporating Qi wireless device chargers into the new line.

Qi, the most widely used wireless charging format, is already available in thousands of hotels and airports worldwide. They will no doubt enjoy the boost from Ikea’s partnership. But there is another wireless charging standard, the Power Matters Alliance. PMA have their own partnerships and likely won’t fold because of one furniture partnership.

But putting the wireless charging divide aside, it’s an exciting new world where your coffee table will be able to charge your phone for you. Ikea’s Qi-powered furniture line will be available in North America and Europe this spring and summer.