As the number of gadgets you own grows, the hassle of charging them all grows with them. More convenient than toting around a surge protector is the OmniStation from CYSPO, a dual wired and wireless charging station that includes cables for just about every modern gadget you own.
If you’ve got an iPhone, there is a good chance you also have a MacBook. The MagSafe charger on Apple’s laptop offerings is easy to use, leading some to want an iPhone with the same functionality. A recently funded Kickstarter is attempting to bring it to us, and even slaps in a battery pack for good measure.
It a great and sunny day and you decide to head outdoors for some alone time with your tablet or phone. But alas, in just a few short hours your device's battery gives you its dying cry. Time to head home and plug in? That might no longer be necessary if Soofa's solar-powered benches become a public fixture just like, well, non solar-powered benches.
Starbucks has introduced a new way for its customers to charge up their devices: wireless charging stations. The new offering is rolling out now, having kicked off with the company's San Francisco stores. If you're not in that area and want to take advantage of the feature, you might have to wait a while: the roll out is planned over the next three years.
What if the credit card in your wallet could someday power your heart? Researchers at Stanford have created an electronic device smaller than a grain of rice, which can be charged remotely by a device roughly the size of a credit card. The goal is to use it as an implant for humans, with it having been tested as a pacemaker for a rabbit already.
One aspect of wearable technology that has been a central concern is battery life -- finding the comfortable mixture of size and longevity, and deciding on the ideal way to charge a device. In the future, that issue could be laid to rest with the use of flexible patches that charge batteries using body heat.
Toshiba has just unveiled a new integrated circuit or IC that will hopefully help make wireless charging a more viable technology. Aside from being compatible with past and future devices and accessories, the TC7763WBG wireless power receiver IC enables such devices to charge as quickly as wired methods.
The wireless charging wars continue. Today Microsoft has let it be known that they’re officially tossing their hat in with the Wireless Power Consortium for the standard wireless abilities quite a few Windows Phone devices already have. Given the idea that Nokia really will end up having their handset business owned by Microsoft in full in the near future, it makes a lot of sense that Microsoft would support the wireless standard they’d already have in place.
There’s a fellow by the name of Markku at Nokia’s Sensors and Energy department - the Principal Researcher of that department. He’s working on a project that’s going to allow users to dance to charge up their smartphone. While it’s relatively far off from a final product, the team has taken to the streets to show the concept off.
As mobile devices get more powerful and wearables start getting traction, the bottleneck of delivering a great user experience lies not on the processor anymore but on batteries. While other companies are sweating over the next battery revolution, Apple is reported to be taking a more muted approach and focusing on improving charging methods instead.
Electric cars are gaining traction among consumers, but the issue of charging while on the go is still one that needs addressed on a larger level. Hevo Power has taken to the topic, looking to add a charging option for EV drivers in New York in the form of circular manhole-disguised units. If all goes as planned, they will be available next year.
This week it's been announced that the high-powered Formula racing circuit known as the FIA Formula E Championship will be working with Qualcomm as their official charging technology provider. This racing series is one made unique by featuring only Formula cars powered exclusively by electric energy. Qualcomm's part in this will be providing their own Halo Electric Vehicle Charging technology to the pits for all vehicles in the circuit to utilize.