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    Any more news on laptops without power cords?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by laserbullet, May 12, 2009.

  1. laserbullet

    laserbullet Notebook Evangelist

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    This video from Intel made me really excited a while back, just curious if more info about progress on this technology was available.
     
  2. chunlianghere

    chunlianghere Notebook Consultant

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    wow...nice!
     
  3. Hirohata

    Hirohata GBF Danchou

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    Main problem. Minimising the coil size. It's been years since I've heard of this again. It's not anything new really. Was supposed to be used to replace power cables as power loss was thought to be minimal. Problem was, it was too expensive.
     
  4. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Wait a few months, if this Dell Latitude Z thing comes through, supposedly there is a wireless power charger for it...
     
  5. idq000

    idq000 Notebook Deity

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    I've read the original paper of the people who actually came up with the idea of doing this. Apparently the problem was the efficiency of the device was extremely low, so that means that the power required to power the transmitting coil needed to be significantly greater than the power actually transmitted. Now that's before we consider the other coil. Since wave power is inversely proportional to the square to the distance of the source, you lose a lot more power by transmitting through distance (not even considering the air). That's why the technology never really gained traction; it was simply far too inefficient to use in any great capacity. I guess it could be feasible to charge and power your laptop on your table if the coil is made into a pad and your laptop sits directly on it. But that technology already exists; Sony has a device the powers itself through this idea of inductive coupling.
     
  6. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    The technology is currently being used in products such as electric toothbrush chargers and small peripheral chargers.
     
  7. Phil

    Phil Retired

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  8. Ferretwulf

    Ferretwulf Notebook Consultant

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    Heh, my elec toothbrush charger uses that and I remember the first time staring at it trying to figure out how it was charging (/me: Where's the damn contacts? Magic charger?") ;)
     
  9. poliuy

    poliuy Notebook Evangelist

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    I heard they are building laptops with small nuclear reactors.... safe anyone? lol
     
  10. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Nuclear reactors are a pretty safe technology... don't associate stigma from nuclear bombs and Chernobyl from this technology. It is a common fallacy, but the scientific world at large acknowledges the benefits of nuclear fission/fusion as the future of energy supplies due to its clean energy output with minimal risk. One day, we will hopefully be able to have miniature fission/fusion reactors to power all sorts of things.

    http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf06.html