So how is this wireless charging actually going to work on the Samsung Galaxy S3? We've been hearing reports that it will just be a simple charging pad, which isn't exactly spectacular. Any other ideas or comments?

Among the engineers and scientists, wireless charging is known as 'inductive charging'. It utilizes two smart coils - one in the charger and another in the device that is getting charged. The primary coil creates a very small electromagnetic field around the charger through which electricity can be transferred. The secondary coil, which is in the phone, receives the power from electromagnetic field and converts in back into electric current to feed it into the battery.

Any idea as to a maximum distance between the two devices for this to work? (Using an average, small charge like phones run on of course.)