New tech can charge your phone in just 9 minutes - and will be available this summer

Mobile phones will fully recharge in just nine minutes thanks to a new kind of battery power.

The technology, which lets phones absorb the charge rapidly without causing damage to batteries, has just been unveiled.

It was showcased at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and will be in devices by the summer.

Chinese phone maker Oppo, the fourth biggest firm globally, is behind the latest innovation.

The firm is growing rapidly in the UK along with sub brands OnePlus, Realme and Vivo.

Apple and Samsung are also looking to develop the technology as better life is so key to sales.

Oppo demonstrated its SuperVooc charging technique using 240 watts of power, showing a battery going from one per cent to 100 percent in nine minutes.

A 150-watt version does it in 15 minutes.

Most phones, including iPhones and Samsungs, can only take in around ten to 30 watts, since having too much power going into their batteries damages them.

Many firms have been held back over batteries overheating, which is dangerous as well as damaging devices.

Samsung had to recall millions of phones in 2016 after batteries overheated, damaging the device, with some even bursting into flames after getting too hot.

The Korean giant recalled 2.5m handsets at a cost of billions of pounds. Oppo's new technology has been in development since 2014.

Neil Monger, Oppo's UK product manager, told the Mail on Sunday: "It's not just about speed - it is also about doing it in a way that is safe for our customers.

"For example, if you just try to put more power into a battery without the relevant safeguards, it may cause longer term battery damage that causes it to degrade quicker over time.

"We test and test to avoid that."

He added: "If someone is keeping a phone for two or three years, they need to know the battery will last.

"A good battery will retain 80 per cent of its capacity after 800 charges. Ours do that after 1,600.'

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