Samsung, Apple research new battery technology to compete with Chinese OEMs

Chinese smartphone OEMs are known for packing large batteries into compact smartphones. In contrast, some of the industry's leading companies, such as Samsung and Apple, often take the safer route of packing modest-sized batteries into their phones, instead focusing on software optimization to improve battery life.

It's a fact that Samsung's affordable Galaxy M and F series have pretty large battery capacities, even up to 7,000mAh. But this trend doesn't extend to the company's top-of-the-line products.

However, recent rumors have revealed that Samsung and Apple are both working on new battery technology to compete with Chinese OEMs. And if this is true, we could soon see larger batteries inside flagship smartphones from the two biggest brands on the market.

Observers say that Chinese smartphone makers are planning to launch more phones with larger batteries ranging from 7,000mAh to 8,000mAh starting next year. Some reports also indicate that Chinese OEMs are aiming to achieve this without increasing the size of their smartphones. In response, Samsung and Apple are said to be stepping up their efforts and are said to be developing new battery technologies to keep up with their Chinese rivals.

Samsung will invest heavily and directly participate in the development of advanced battery materials. The South Korean giant is working to improve anode and cathode materials to produce a completely new solid-state battery component that offers better performance and efficiency. One of the technologies includes significantly increasing the silicon content in the battery. While higher silicon levels often lead to battery expansion, some industry sources have revealed that Samsung has found a solution to address these issues, but did not elaborate.

Samsung has filed more than 40 patent applications related to all-solid-state oxide-based batteries, and the company should have products equipped with such batteries in the next few years.

Apple is also joining the fray, pursuing a similar strategy to Samsung. According to the report, Apple is looking to create an 'all-new' battery with significantly improved performance. The company's team is currently in the process of combining cathode materials to determine performance. Apple's new battery has a completely different composition than existing batteries, combining raw materials such as nickel, cobalt, manganese and aluminum to improve performance. However, Apple won't be able to introduce the new battery technology until after 2026.

Jessica Tanner

Update 05 January 2025