Usb Fuel Cell Promises Two-week Charge For Smartphones

#1 PCWorld

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 05:51 AM

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#2 KLanD

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 07:05 AM

I wonder if it has enough juice to run a USB LED light.

#3 mipa

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 07:10 AM

Battery technology will improve by 20 fold within 5 years and this will be obsolete. Big changes are coming in batteries!! Mostly due to finding ways to use Silicon instead of carbon to lock onto Lithium ions (24 fold increase) without the swelling problems of old.

#4 Jimster480

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 12:14 PM

Holy crap its finally here! The only thing is that it might be a bit too late as battery tech really steps up. But we will see how it performs in real world tests.

#5 FishamanP

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 02:30 PM

Stupid and expensive.

I bet a solar charger would be cheaper.

#6 Evildave

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 02:35 PM

I guarantee a solar charger is less expensive.
http://www.google.co...lar+usb+charger

A folding, 30 watt panel capable of charging my Macbook Air, or a car battery, or a deep cycle battery costs about the same, though it needs a bit more space to lay out.
http://www.google.co...ar+30+watt+fold

Of course, no need to buy 'refills' as long as the sun is up there shining. Even on most cloudy days, you can charge.

Not to say a 'fuel cell' wouldn't be useful in an arctic winter, or deep under ground... but good luck getting a signal. Still, you could enjoy your mp3 tunes until the end....

BTW, if it can charge a cell phone, it can run a small LED light, or charge one.

This post has been edited by Evildave: 09 May 2012 - 02:40 PM

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#7 SimonTaylor

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Posted 09 May 2012 - 02:45 PM

Looks good but is it going to be available in europe and if so when? I'm in the UK.

Does it have a standard mAh rating cos saying it can charge a smartphone for 2 weeks isn't very accurate. What if you want to plug in a portablt USB HDD and a smartphone, how long would it last?