Pocket Sized Fuel Cell Charger

No matter what smartphone you have, from the cheapest models to the latest and greatest high-end devices... there's one thing that unites them all - and I'm not talking about rings in a Tolkien story ;) - ... battery life. That's right, no matter how powerful smartphones are these days, they can hardly go a couple of days without requiring a charge; and they can even end up not making through a single day, if you happen to use them intensively!

So... how can we expect to be able to use our mobile devices in a truly mobile way, far from the nearest power outlet?

The answer may be arriving sooner than we'd expect, if we're to believe this Lilliputian Systems fuel cell pocket charger. It promises to completely charge your smartphone a dozen times before it runs out of fuel, which means you'll get a couple of weeks - or more - of stress free time away from any traditional power source.

Unlike some previous fuel cell solutions, which ended up having no real advantage over an external LiIon battery pack with similar volume, this one seem to really deliver what we'd expect.

Guess it won't be long before people will be requesting to "fill up" their mobile devices... :)

Bloom Box - Energy Revolution in the Making?

Will this be it? The next era in energy and power revolution?

I know it sounds too good to be true, but that's exactly what K.R. Sridahr and Bloom Energy say they're about to da as their Bloom Box reaches public announcement (scheduled for tomorrow.)

Can you imagine powering an entire home thanks to just two small cubes (like the ones in the image)?

And forget those noise mechanical generators, this has absolutely no moving parts, and relies on "simple" chemical reactions - a fuel cell - but unlike the other available fuel cells, this one is expected to be much more affordable. At least, once it get to "mass production", in 5 to 10 years.

electrochemical reactions are much more efficient than combustion to shaft to electrical generation techniques

K.R. Sridahr invented one such thing for NASA a while back, for operation on Mars, but his sights are set on a more earthly goal this time: to place a Bloom Box in every home within a decade.


And if you think this is but a mad dream with no real product, let me tell you that Google has been using Bloom Boxes for over a year now, and other big players are using it as well, Ebay, FedEx, etc. have been evaluating Bloom Boxes with seemingly great results and savings.

If all goes well, we might expect to have a small sized noiseless "magic box" that can power up all our electronics, greatly reducing the stress on (or even removing the need for) our costly electric infrastructure.

Methanol Internet Viewer from Toshiba

We're often reminded how close we are to the "future" when you least expect it. Just have a look at this Internet Viewer from Toshiba.

Besides looking like a futuristic MID, the most impressive part isn't its style but the time it can stand away from a power outlet.

Thanks to its DMFC (Direct Methanol Fuel Cell) technology, you can use one of these for about a week at a time on each methanol recharge.

And as you can see in the video, this is a real working unit - which makes us believe we can actually see one of these out in the streets sooner than we might expect. (Lets hope so!)

Batteries that Last

No matter how great mobile devices (like the new iPhone 3G) are, there comes a time when it inevitably runs out of juice - almost always sooner than we hoped for.
(And in a worst case scenario, just when you need it the most.)

However, things might change if MTI Micro keeps its word. The MTI Micro Mobion Fuel Cell has been tried and tested and achieved 2,700 hours of continuous operation. 
Can these micro fuel cells, really revolutionize the mobile market and take it to new heights?
Let's hope so!

"Our test results are a clear indication of the technical progress we have made on performance metrics including life, degradation, temperature, and humidity levels which are required to bring products to market in the consumer electronics industry. To our knowledge, there are no other published results that match ours," said Jim Prueitt, Vice President of Engineering and Operations at MTI Micro.

If you want to learn more: how this technology works and its advantages.

via [GottaBemobile]