Goal Zero has added a new portable battery to its range, with the Yeti 500X promising fridge- and TV-powering levels of juice along with new portable solar panels to keep it charged up off-grid. The newest "portable power station" in Goal Zero's line-up, the Yeti 500X packs a 505 Wh battery as well as a 60W USB-PD port for USB-C Power Delivery compatible devices like laptops.
Samsung has developed a solid-state battery that could allow an electric car to drive 500 miles on a single charge, dramatically increasing the power density over the current level of EV battery technology. The idea of an all-solid-state power pack isn't new, but Samsung's researchers believe they've come up with a fix to address lingering problems around longevity and stability.
Smartphones are getting more and more powerful but batteries are barely able to keep up. We are pretty much left with band-aid solutions like quick charging, no matter how fast and impressive they may be. Making software more energy-efficient is also a much-needed fix but, sooner or later, you will run out of juice. It seems that Google is preparing something for this year's Pixel phone that will let you squeeze out as much as you can when the next power outlet is still hours away.
A photography equipment company called Kessler has introduced a peculiar adapter designed to turn DeWalt power tool batteries into portable power banks for USB devices and select camera gear. The adapter works with two commonly available power tool batteries, the kind you'd use to power a drill or impact driver. The upside to this unusual device is the fact that you can buy these batteries in hardware stores across the nation.
If you simply base it on fan renders, Samsung's second foldable phone will be awesome. But if you base it on the previous Galaxy Fold and a few leaks, the Galaxy Z Flip might be something of a mixed bag. As we move closer to the announcement and launch of the foldable flippable phone, more details are starting to come in and, based on this latest pair, the Galaxy Z Flip might indeed offer an overall better experience than its predecessor.
It looks like Goal Zero will refresh all of the models in its Yeti X of line of lithium power stations in 2020, and it showed up to CES this year with information on what to expect. Goal Zero's power stations are stand-ins for more traditional gas generators, and in the case of the Yeti X line, they can be charged either through the use of a solar panel or by plugging them into a wall outlet.
Leaks and alleged insider information are regular occurrences in the mobile and tech industry and sometimes it might be difficult to separate the chaff from the wheat. There are some claims that sound so outlandish to be true but still end up surprising the public. The upcoming Huawei P40 won't be that, however, at least as far as once rumored feature goes. Huawei itself officially shot down the speculation that its next flagship phone will have a revolutionary kind of battery.
Unlike Huawei's previous flagships, the Huawei Mate 30 almost flew under the radar, thanks to its unavailability in many markets. You rarely hear about it unless it's in relation to the US blacklist and how it misses out on Google Play apps and services. On its own, however, the Huawei Mate 30 is a formidable and advanced Android phone and it seems that the Huawei P40 will continue that trend and will deliver features no smartphone has today: graphene batteries.
Despite having a probably more energy-efficient mobile operating system, iPhone owners have been begging Apple for a larger battery. Those prayers have been answered, to some extent, when Apple launched the larger iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s. Of course, the need for more hours of battery life never ends and Apple may be giving next year's iPhones just a wee bit more battery not by enlarging the iPhone yet again but by shrinking at least one part inside.
Goal Zero has added a new, compact model to its portable power range, with the Yeti 200X promising a lot more juice than the typical external battery. Even though it's capable of recharging your phone up to twenty times, the Yeti 200X is still about the same size as a six-pack of Coke.
Whether it's a planned outage or an unexpected one, losing power at home is never fun, but with some straightforward preparation it needn't be a nightmare. With big chunks of California going offline this week - myself included - it's been a good opportunity to test out my emergency plan, including some low-tech preparation and some high-tech gadgets like the latest battery backups. Here's what has worked for me, and how it might help you.
With Google's big pixel event coming next week, the Internet is once again heating up with rumors and leaks about the Pixel 4 phones. Given how those have run in the past few months, there is very little left to talk about, unless you start comparing the Pixel 4 to its predecessor, the Pixel 3. A new info dump doesn't exactly revealing many new things but does confirm the details surrounding the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL and, at least in some aspects, those details can prove to be disappointing.