One commentary I always make about the smartphone industry is that there’s always a huge focus on making devices more and more responsive as time goes by. Every year, every smartphone is always “faster” or “lighter” or “thinner.” Screen technology is improving very fast from LCD to LED to AMOLED to Super AMOLED to Super AMOLED Plus. BUT — and that’s a big but: what about battery technology? Lithium ion and lithium polymer have been around since the 80’s and although there are improvements to how devices save battery life, there isn’t much on the forefront of next-generation battery technology. The near future is bright however, with graphene (wrote about that here as a thought piece on the iPad rumor) being looked at as the new wonder-element for semiconductors and battery technology.
But that’s the future. What about now?
Imagine your current WiFi technology: you’re at the mall and your phone can access the Internet via several seamless hotspots. Some are password protected while others aren’t. Now imagine the same thing, but applied to battery technology and being free for everyone! Imagine your phone being able to charge itself wirelessly through magnetic induction. The proof of concept is already here: I have two Powermats at home, one a solo dock for the iPhone 4/4s while the other is an actual mat that allows you to charge up to two devices.
The platform comes with proprietary cases for the iPhone and a number of BlackBerry models. Yes, you need a case to charge. The case has a magnetic strip that helps dock the phone in place and also makes the induction of your “charge” possible. If you’re on other devices, the PowerCube comes with different endings for various phones including Android, Sony Ericsson, iOS and BlackBerry.
But wait, if I use the cube, doesn’t that still count as a “wired” charge? The cube seems to be the practical workaround for the entire system as future PowerMat products will even include an insane microSD card that links your phone to a charger. Wirelessly. It’s called the Wireless Charging Card.
By themselves, these PowerMats have two advantages apart from the wireless charging:
a. They all have fast-charging features
b. They all have auto-off features once battery is at 100%
So what do you think? Useful? Maybe the pricing will help you decide:
PowerMat with Powercube PHP 3,990.00
PowerMat for iPhone 4s w/ case PHP 3,490.00
For me, the platform is really useful in a BlackBerry or iPhone-filled household or office space because the induction technology is built into the phone case so you really don’t need to plug in anything, anymore.
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On a timely note, here’s a very fresh press release on a new partnership between Qualcomm and Samsung for wireless freedom in battery technology:
3 replies on “Charge your smartphone wirelessly with the Powermat Wireless Charging Platform”
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