Quick Version: We take a look at three different iPhone/iPod chargers from Kensington, RichardSolo, and i.Sound, weighing the pros and cons of each. → Read More
Once upon a time, I was at some press conference somewhere dealing with laptops and someone in the audience asked why battery technology hasn’t improved. The exec on stage replied something to the effect of, “Batteries aren’t our industry, they’re a chemistry problem.” So your laptop’s awful battery life can be blamed on chemistry. Until now! → Read More
This little guy, the Febot, charges your batteries, literally. Like, it literally charges Duracell (and other, lesser brands) batteries. Well, “literally” is a bit strong, as it’s only a concept, but whatever. → Read More
Just a heads up that there are a handful of potentially dangerous laptop batteries floating around out there. These ones are made by Sony but are found in certain models of HP, Toshiba, and Dell notebooks. The HP notebooks are the most at risk with about 32,000 affected batteries. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, “There have been 19 reports of the batteries overheating, including 17 reports of flames/fire (10 resulting in minor property damage). Two consumers experienced minor burns.” PC Notebook Computer Batteries Recalled Due to Fire and Burn Hazard [CPSC] → Read More
Holy crap, you could drive a truck under that thing. That’s a nine cell battery for the MSI Wind netbook, which is available on Ebay’s UK site according to a post in the MsiWind.net forums. The item ships from China for a grand total of around £70 – roughly $115 in US dollars. Owners of this gigantic lump are reporting over 6.5 hours of battery life. When I tested the six-cell MSI Wind, I was able to get a little over five hours before having to recharge so I’d almost think you could squeeze 8+ hours out of a nine-cell battery with everything tweaked to maximize power consumption. [via Wired] → Read More
I would caution you all against buying accessories for your Apple laptop now, a week before a major Apple announcement, but this external battery does look pretty handy. It plugs right into the MBP as if it were an outlet and gives (they say) 6-10 hours of extra battery life. Of course, my MBP is so borked that that would mean 6-10 hours of total battery life (thanks Apple), but hey. Two caveats: one, you have to buy a new magsafe power adapter (or have yours modded) and two, the thing costs $450. Man, I could buy another laptop and just use that one when the first runs out! → Read More
Remember the word “spintronics” as you may be hearing more and more about it over the coming months. It’s basically a phenomenon that creates magnetic currents that behave much in the same way that electric currents work, except with out all the heat that electric currents generate. In the computer world, advancements have already been made toward magnetic RAM, which is said to be much faster than conventional RAM and uses far less power (like 90% less power). Now scientists in Japan have extended the same principle towards batteries. Such a battery, when used in, say, a laptop, would produce no heat and would consume far less power. The new breakthrough has been coined the “Seebeck effect” in honor of Thomas Johan Seebeck, who discovered thermoelectricity back in the 1800s. No word on if we’ll actually see these wonderful batteries anytime soon, but I’m guessing we’ll be stuck with the good old lap-scorching, explosion-prone lithium ion batteries for a while. [via Spintronics-Info.com] → Read More
A new set of EU Directives could force Apple to re-design its iPod and iPhone in Europe. And if it did that, it might as well re-design them for every market, right? The Directives would force manufacturers to design their products so that batteries are easily replaces—unscrew one or two screws, flip a tab, etc. Seems the EU wants to make it easier for people to dispose of their old electronics without endangering the environment with leaky, dangerous batteries littered about the countryside. As such, Apple, whose iPod and iPhone don’t have easily removable batteries, would have to do a little re-designin’. Of course, other manufacturers would similarly have to design their products; it’s not like Brussels is picking on Apple specifically. Everyone knows it hates Microsoft. → Read More
Thank you, lord. And by lord, I mean Toshiba. Now, if you believe everything you read, it appears that these new SCiB batteries last longer, charge faster, stay cooler, and survive more recharges. If I’m not mistaken, that’s an improvement on every single aspect I care about in a laptop battery. The one thing they don’t mention is price. And you can bet that if these things were cheap, they’d have said so. So while I’ll be happy to rock these new batteries when they make it to consumer devices, I’m pretty sure we’ll be paying a premium for a little while. Yes, I know it’s not that kind of battery. → Read More
HTC Shift owners (see our review here) who have a little extra coin and don’t mind adding some relatively substantial girth to their device may find solace in a $240 extended battery from Mugen. Paul from Modaco posted a video of the battery itself and how it looks when added to the Shift. The included battery cover is a nice touch. The Shift’s standard battery is 2700mAh and is rated for two hours of use. With pretty aggressive web surfing over the Shift’s EVDO connection, I was only ever able to get around an hour of use before needing to recharge, though. Whatever the case, the extended battery is rated at 6600mAh, more than double the capacity of the stock one. There’s also a 4400mAh battery for $170. → Read More
If there are two truths I’ve learned throughout my storied 29.5 years, it’s that 1) Everybody needs batteries and 2) Not everybody loves Everybody Loves Raymond. Some say it’s his voice or the constant bickering between his wife and his mother, but I digress. Go to Amazon.com and buy 80 AA batteries from Duracell – it’ll be five two-packs at $8.07 each. Your total will add up to just over $40. Then use coupon code DURA908 at checkout and you’ll get $10 off. The deal is good on other Duracell batteries as well. While $30 might seem like a pretty penny to spend on batteries, if you use a lot of AA’s this is a pretty good deal. Free shipping, too. Duracell Ultra AA Batteries [Amazon.com via dealnews] → Read More
Notebook computers are starting to outnumber desktops in many schools and work settings. Keeping these laptops charged and ready to go can be a real challenge for a lot of IT people. The problem is more common in the schools, since students could lose or forget their power cords. To solve this problem some teachers or IT peeps may consider Oncore’s 6-Bay Battery Charger for Apple notebooks the solution.It’ll charge 3 batteries simultaneously and keep up to six charged and ready for action. Not only will it work with the new Macbooks, it will also work for older iBooks. Guess that “dog ate my battery” excuse won’t work any more. Curses! → Read More
Nissan is throwing its hat into the electric vehicle ring in a big way. The Japanese auto maker just announced the development of a vehicle that has a new type of battery. Compared to the batteries found in other electric (and hybrid) vehicles, the one found in Nissan’s can store twice as much electricity. Batteries are seen as one of the choke points in electric and hybrid vehicle development. You can go through hell developing a fantastic new engine, but if you’re still storing everything in conventional batteries it’s hardly worth the effort. The company also plans to launch a hybrid vehicle of its own in the U.S. and Japan in 2010. → Read More
If you’re not yet turned off by MSI’s recent price hikes or you have a three-cell version of the Wind already, a post over in the MSI Wind Forums details how to turn the small-ish three-cell battery into a whopping nine-cell battery. It looks relatively easy if you’re really determined, although I’d likely not attempt anything that involved slicing the battery open with a box cutter. Finding the extra six cells to add to the standard three cells might be a bit difficult, too, as the forum poster simply says that he was able to “get a source of the same batteries that are in the Wind” but doesn’t detail how the rest of us could get our hands on those batteries. If you’re the daring type, though, here’s a brief overview of the process. → Read More
