Power cords no longer needed for all our gadgets

Two companies (WildCharge and Fulton Innovation) currently at CES are demonstrating power chargers that do not require cables, power adapters and those annoying proprietary connectors.

From Wildcharge comes WildCharger, a device with a metal pad (0.1-inch thick and with a surface of 6 by 15 inches) on which you place the devices you want to recharge. When contact is made between the pad and the device, electrical power flows between the two. The 90-watt device will be sufficient to charge mobile phones and MP3 players that need 3 to 5 watts and smaller laptops needing 50 to 75 watts of power. A smaller version, the Wildcharger Mini, capable of 15-watts will also be offered.

The larger version should sell for about $100 USD while the Mini will sell for about $40 USD.

From Fulton Innovation comes eCoupled. eCoupled-enabled devices transfer energy over short distances by a process called adaptive inductive coupling. The wireless power adapter can sense how much power a particular battery needs, adjust the necessary settings and ‘beam over’ the charge. The eCoupled technology power supplies adapt to multiple loads and spatial configurations while maximizing energy transfer efficiencies by dynamically seeking resonance between the power supply and device at high frequencies to achieve the optimal coupling coefficient under all conditions.

The first eCoupled product is a car cup holder which plugs into a car’s 12-volt outlet. Eventually, Fulton Innovations sees its products integrated into all kinds of spaces (tables, desks, etc) to allow device charging anywhere.

Of course, Splashpower promised a similar solution at CES back in 2003. It has yet to deliver the product. It remains to be seen if the technologies catch on this time around.

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