USB-C was supposed to fix the thicket of charger confusion. Instead, the iPhone 17 buries a new wrinkle that further obfuscates fast charging compatibility. The report continues to allege that Apple’s new phones implement USB Power Delivery Adjustable Voltage Supply (AVS), are skipping PPS, and are the first to bring Apple’s Dynamic Power Adapter that offers a 40W capacity with the option to charge 50% of your device in just 20 minutes. The result: faster iPhone top-ups, but indeed a frustrating landscape for anyone balancing chargers from different brands.
What’s different in Apple’s charging strategy
Apple’s decision seems to revolve around AVS, a feature introduced with later USB PD releases. The company’s 40W adapter may be able to momentarily surge higher using a current boost, but in constant phone charging mode, this is unlikely. In practice, in real-world terms, the iPhone 17 is definitely quicker (for short top-ups at least) than its predecessors from last year, but Apple is also still shying away from PPS (the protocol most high-end Android phones utilize for their fastest rates).
That omission matters. PPS is the basis for Samsung’s Super Fast Charging (25W/45W) and Google’s recent Pixel speeds, continually monitoring the battery requirements as they change in real time. AVS enhances fixed-voltage USB PD by providing finer voltage selections, but doesn’t natively support the same granular, on-the-fly battery following that makes PPS so successful for heat and efficiency at phone-level voltages.
AVS vs. PPS explained without jargon for everyday users
Consider AVS a smarter fixed gear: it allows the charger to choose a more specific voltage while “fixed” versus old-school PD, and then to camp on that output until there’s a renegotiation.
That’s great for stability and system power delivery, particularly as we see wattages rising. PPS, on the other hand, acts more like an automatic transmission, incrementally fine-tuning voltage and current to stay in lockstep with the battery’s evolving requirements. It is this dynamic control that mitigates conversion losses in the phone, and generally permits higher, continuous charging speeds without the device getting cooked.
The USB Implementers Forum then introduced (among other things) PD to 240W with the 3.1 generation and further developed it within PD 3.2. In these updates, AVS came to be a standard requirement for higher-power bands, while PPS is optional. That’s probably why Apple hopped on the AVS bandwagon: it fits into the new buck spec playbook, without heralding disses upon our fair fast-charging system for Android.
Why your chargers may not be up to the task
Here’s the headache. Most of the high-end USB-C bricks on the market today were designed around PPS plus fixed PD for phones and one-size-fits-all fixed PD for laptops, except that AVS support is just now rolling out to commercial accessories. Apple’s new 40W charger is AVS-centric, and information released doesn’t mention PPS at the time of this writing. In the meantime, some of the most popular chargers don’t yet contain AVS.
There are signs of a shift: Google’s 67W Pixel Flex charger supports AVS, bringing both worlds together for some newer devices. But if you want a single plug that can rapid charge an iPhone 17, a Galaxy flagship, and a modern laptop at their highest speeds, your acceptably small set of options remains limited. Your old PD charger will still be compatible with an iPhone 17, just not at its maximum targets. On the flip side, Apple’s adapter isn’t going to be optimal with PPS-driven Android speeds either. The lag isn’t tragic — iPhones aren’t exactly the bad boys of charging speed — but it’s a fractured user experience nonetheless.
Standards progress, but consumer confusion persists
In terms of sound standard logic, it’s defensible. The USB-IF has been pressuring AVS to do better at higher power for efficiency and heat, making it a requirement in certain power ranges under newer revisions. You don’t necessarily need PPS, which is really for phones. “Vendors can declare themselves standards-compliant and pick different fast charging paths — and that’s exactly what is happening.”
For consumers, it works out to being homework. The three overlapping modes — fixed PD, AVS, and PPS — also share the same USB-C port but don’t enable similar results. Toss in cable quirks, such as requiring an e-marked 5 A cable for high-power laptops and 240W accessories, and the “one-port future” suddenly feels like a labyrinth.
What to buy for the best results across your devices
If you have an iPhone 17 and Android flagships, be on the lookout for chargers that specifically mention support not just for PPS but also AVS (preferably 65W to 100W with multiport outputs). Look for silicon from trusted sources such as Texas Instruments, Infineon, or Power Integrations — typically called out in spec sheets — and mate with certified, e-marked 5 A cables if you’re charging a laptop or high-wattage gear.
The PPS charger you already have is fine as a charger; it will charge the iPhone safely, just not at the latest AVS-optimized rates. If you purchase Apple’s adapter, great behavior is what you get with the iPhone, but compromises everywhere else. Today, the best course of action for single-brick arrangements is still a multiport PD charger with PPS that you keep an eye on to ensure new models add AVS.
The bigger picture on Apple, AVS and USB-C charging
Apple’s AVS-first position doesn’t break USB-C; it actually just shows the standard’s flexibility to be a double-edged sword. Also, as more chargers come out with AVS in addition to PPS, the market will begin to consolidate. Until then, the iPhone 17’s method nudges us a bit closer to having to purchase another “universal” adapter that’s anything but universal. For a port that claims to be simple, this is the most frustrating charge of all.