Why not make this on a much more localized scale, like inches or a fraction of an inch? I have an electric toothbrush that does this. I've long wished my phone had a similar simple cradle (ahem, maybe even standardized!) that I could set it in and charge it wirelessly. Yes I know there are cradles now, but they require actually plugging into a fixed connector. I think I saw an add-on for iPhones once that did this.
Funny. I’ve wondered the exact same thing (cradle).