[gps-talkusers] Re: could our gadgetry get designed to charge by this new device
- From: Kevin Chao <kevinchao89@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:56:27 -0700
This sounds excellent in theory, but here are at least two issues I see by
just reading the article:
" Therefore, you have to retrofit each of your existing appliances with
back-panel contact dots -- at a price of $35 apiece. "
I doubt that they have these panels available for BrailleNotes, Braille
Sense and GPS Receivers.
" Today, though, it's exclusively for BlackBerry and Razr owners."
And, this validates my point above.
Kevin
_____
From: gps-talkusers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:gps-talkusers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Dogsc4me
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2008 3:38 PM
To: gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [gps-talkusers] could our gadgetry get designed to charge by this
new device
Cheree Heppe here:
This company might be worth contacting if one wanted a new, sleek, universal
device designed to power the various electronics we use, instead of those
bulky power bricks. I'm sure they haven't even considered this outlet for
their device and why not encourage all parties to consider an upgrade
Article follows
The Perfect Charger (Almost)
By [5]DAVID POGUE
Would you still want the power to fly, if you were required to put on a
117-piece set of chain mail before each flight? Would you still value
instant teleportation, if you had to fill out a 72-page form before
each jaunt? Would you still want control over the universe, if you had
to power it by pedaling an exercise bike 14 hours a day?
In other words, how much inconvenience would you tolerate in exchange
for a little magic? Thanks to a new product called the WildCharge mat,
that question is no longer hypothetical.
The concept is irresistible: For $60, you get a thin pad that's about
the size of a typical mouse pad (8 x 6 inches). Its surface is covered
by 12 shiny chrome stripes. Each day when you come home, you just set
your cellphone, [6]iPod and BlackBerry directly on the mat. They
connect to it solidly with a subtle magnetic click -- and you marvel as
they begin charging automatically.
In other words, this single, sleek pad replaces the hideous mass of
heavy, ugly, black power bricks that are currently required to recharge
your mobile gadgets. (There's a special circle of hell reserved for
every electronics-company designer who's ever shipped a product with
yet another proprietary, mutually incompatible AC adapter brick.)
And since it can charge five doodads at once, the mat also reclaims
four power outlets on your wall, freeing them up for more important
jobs; the mat's own power cord uses only a single wall socket. If
you're a business traveler, you'll find the apparatus simpler and
lighter to carry than a mess of black wall warts.
The first time you plop your BlackBerry or Razr onto the WildCharge and
see it light up with the "battery charging" message, without your
having had to fiddle with a single cord, plug or connector, you can't
help smiling. This, you think, is how things should work.
Now, WildCharge is not the only company pursuing the dream of
cordless-recharging surfaces on desks, counters and bureaus. A number
of companies are working on it -- or have gone out of business trying.
WildCharge, however, is the first company to bring such a product to
market. The difference, it says, is in the technology it uses. Its
rivals are trying to incorporate something called wireless inductive
power, where rapidly changing magnetic fields transfer the power.
That's how cordless electric toothbrushes get recharged. The advantage
is that you don't need visible metal contacts to conduct the power; the
disadvantages are low efficiency, susceptibility to interference --
and, evidently, difficulty bringing a product to market.
The WildCharge uses conductive power, meaning that the little metal
charging terminals on your phone, iPod, or whatever come in direct
contact with the charging mat's metal strips. There's no radiation.
There are no magnetic fields, either, so there's no danger to credit
cards, hard drives or videotapes. And there are no electric shocks; if
flesh, liquid or some metal object touches the metallic strips on the
pad, the power cuts off instantly (yes, I tried it, and felt nothing
but relief). The charging resumes once the offending object, puddle or
limb is removed.
All right, so the charging mat works like a charm, it solves all kinds
of problems and it's wicked cool. So what about the trade-off -- the
WildCharge's equivalent of the chain mail, the exercise bike and the
72-page form?
The problem is that the electricity somehow has to find a pathway from
the charging pad to the gadget. Any WildCharge-compatible gadget has
four tiny raised nubbins on its back panel, metal pinhead contacts
strategically arranged so that they'll get the necessary power no
matter how sloppily you toss the device onto the pad. Unfortunately, no
gadgets are made that way today.
Therefore, you have to retrofit each of your existing appliances with
back-panel contact dots -- at a price of $35 apiece. For the BlackBerry
Curve and BlackBerry Pearl, you get a rubbery silicone "skin" that
slips over the phone like a galosh. Not only does this skin have the
requisite contact points on the back, but it doubles as a handy
protective case for the BlackBerry itself.
(As a bonus, the BlackBerry skin leaves the phone's traditional
charging jack -- the little USB jack on the side -- unobstructed. The
BlackBerry happens to have a second set of charging contacts, intended
for charging docks, on the back panel. They connect to the WildCharge
skin.)
For the [7]Motorola Razr phone, the retrofit is much sleeker: you get a
replacement back panel (battery cover) for the phone. This approach
adds no bulk to the phone in your pocket, although there's a two-inch
rubber arm that snakes down to the phone's charging jack. You have to
yank it out when you want to plug anything else in there. (Be sure you
order the correct panel for your phone. There are more than a dozen
Razr models, but WildCharge panels are available only for the V3, V3c,
V3e and V3m.)
And that, at the moment, is it. Those are the only three
WildCharge-compatible gadgets: BlackBerry Pearl, BlackBerry Curve and
Motorola Razr.
The company says that it will offer iPod and [8]iPhone adapters later
this year; photos and descriptions indicate that these, too, will take
the form of silicone skins. Their bottom edges plug into the recharging
jack at the bottom of the iPod or iPhone. WildCharge is also working on
a universal cellphone adapter, where you'll simply attach the correct
charging-jack tip for your phone model.
WildCharge hopes to license and spread its technology. For example,
Griffin International is working on WildCharge-compatible replacement
back panels for Wii and Xbox remotes. Just store your remotes on the
mat when you're not playing, and they'll always be charged and ready.
Unfortunately, neither adapter solution is ideal. The silicone skin
approach does provide protection, but it also adds bulk. It also hides
your gizmo's good looks -- the iPhone's shiny curves, for example --
inside what amounts to an ugly rubber wetsuit.
There's a downside to the back-panel approach, too. It sacrifices some
sleekness for the glory of wireless charging. The back panel now bulges
slightly to accommodate the electronics, and its smooth, comfortable
surface is now interrupted by the stubble of those contacts.
You should note, too, that the mat takes longer to recharge your gadget
than the original power cord. The company won't say exactly how much
slower, noting only that it's equivalent to trickle-charging from a
computer's USB jack rather than a power cord. In theory, you won't
care, since you'll get into the habit of topping off the charge every
time you sit down -- and if you typically recharge overnight, you won't
notice any difference.
So yes, the WildCharge is magical technology. But if you had any
additional wishes, you might wish for one that didn't require so much
modification of your electronics. You might wish for compatibility with
more gadgets -- like laptops, which WildCharge says it's working on.
You might wish, as the company's executives do, for a day when
WildCharge mats are built into desks, countertops, coffee shop tables
and hotel room bureaus. (There's no size limitation to the mat size.
The company says that it could be as small as a deck of cards, or it
could cover an entire tabletop.)
Maybe the WildCharge mat will indeed catch on like wildfire. Today,
though, it's exclusively for BlackBerry and Razr owners. It brings
supreme recharging convenience -- at a price.
E-mail:
pogue@xxxxxxxxxxx
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