Well the obvious/main advantage is no need to connect a cord to your phone. Just sit it down on the charger and it starts charging. The same holds for my headphones and Apple Watch. I just sit them on the charging pad and they start charging. Disadvantages would be finding compatible cases and also if you need to use your phone for a call while it's low. You still would need to plug it in unless I guess you're on your headphones/speakerphone.