batteries

Organig LEDs hold large promise for efficient, thin and flexible lighting elements (as well as razor-thin TVs), but low-tech power sources continue to constrain more creative uses of the lights. After all, what good is a shirt of woven LEDs if you need to lug around 10 C batteries to power it? Thankfully, GE is teaming up with the makers of printable, paper-thin battery to create self-powered OLEDs with the battery integrated into the thin light element itself.

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Reading the electronic-media narrative as it plays out in many popular tech and news blogs, one would think we are hurtling toward a future where paper is all but unnecessary. But a new development in battery technology could bring paper right back around to its former place of prominence, using it to power the very digital devices -- smartphones, Kindles, laptops, etc. -- that are increasingly replacing print.

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We've all been there, angrily jabbing the remote control at the cable box in a futile attempt to change the channel. When remote control batteries die, my sanity often follows closely behind. Well, soon that will be a problem as quaint as running out of whale oil for a lantern, thanks to a new remote control that charges itself with the energy from its buttons.

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In Australia, gaming is a hobby that’s not taken as seriously as it should be. In between certain South Australian attorney generals dictating that our nation shouldn’t have an adult rating for games and the tangent belief that gamers are overweight, unattractive teens, one doesn’t have to wonder too hard as to why this is.

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All batteries need love and the BC-900 is a great way to show that you care. I'm constantly charging for my five digital door locks, flashlights, GPS and cordless mice. This charger has been one of my favorite devices not only for keeping my gadgets going, but for prolonging the life of my rechargeable AAs as well. It sports a display and charge-control modes for each battery. Find out more about what this device can teach you about your batteries after the jump.

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Nuclear power has long provided steady energy sources for everything from homes to deep space probes. Now researchers have begun developing a tiny nuclear battery the size of a penny that could provide power in a smaller, lighter, and more efficient package.

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Imagine pulling into a service station, but instead of filling the tank with unleaded, you slide out your drained battery and -- for a fee -- slide in a fully charged one. It's a similar model to that many stores use for propane tanks, and it could one envisioned for Tesla's new Model S sedan. Edmunds Green Car Advisor reports the new model was designed with swappable batteries in mind, according to Tesla's outgoing director of vehicle engineering and manufacturing.

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I'm not sure what sparked my battery obsession. Perhaps it was the installation of 3,000 lbs of lead-acid batteries used to power my homestead. Shortly after that, I found myself zapping old Ni-CD based battery packs with a welder to bring the once-dead batteries back to life. Then I began repacking the cells of other household items, including my iRobot vac and my Macbook. Now I regularly visit a local auto supply, combing through batteries for signs of life. My office is littered with a hodge-podge of Ni-CD, lead-acid and lithium-based cells that are patiently awaiting repairs and a new purpose.

Here's what I've learned about keeping batteries in shape, and rehabbing old ones from the junk heap.

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Boaters like spray and sun in their face, not exhaust. The first hybrid sport boat, courtesy of a co-designer of the Aptera electric car, delivers cleaner thrills.

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Sports cars have long tested their 24-hour endurance on the Le Mans racing circuit in France. Now a Panasonic robot named Mr. Evolta will try to claim the distance record for a remote-controlled car, pedaling along furiously at 1.3 kilometers per hour (0.8 mph).

The tricycling robot should manage about six laps of the 4-kilometer (2.5 mile) Le Mans circuit during the required day-long period, when it makes the attempt next Wednesday. It will navigate the winding course by following an infrared beam emitted by a lead buggy that travels ahead.

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Batteries have always been bulky, heavy and an environmental nightmare, making them a particularly evil necessity over the years. The bad rap that the traditional energy cell cops could be about to change however, with the invention of printable batteries that can be produced cost-effectively on a large scale. It was developed by a research team led by Prof. Dr. Reinhard Baumann of the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Electronic Nano Systems ENAS in Chemnitz. "Our goal is to be able to mass produce the batteries at a price of single digit cent range each," states Dr.

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Who hasn't missed an important call or woke up at the wrong time because you forgot to charge your cellphone over night? Well, Nokia hopes to make that a thing of the past by developing a technology that would use ambient radio radiation to perpetually charge a phone's battery.

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Mowing the lawn may not be the most glamorous chore, but Husqvarna’s new concept mower might change the image of grass grooming forever. Powered by a fully electric and rechargeable lithium phosphate battery, the mower can zip along for 2 grass-decapitating hours.

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The frustrations that come from the limited battery life of mobile phones, and laptops could become a thing of the past thanks to a new battery developed at the University of St Andrews in the UK. Researchers believe they can boost the power supply by a factor of as much as ten, and the technology can even be applied to electric cars.

Made from porous carbon, the STAIR (St Andrews Air) cell boosts power by drawing oxygen from the air through the surface of the battery during discharge. The oxygen reacts within the pores of the carbon to discharge the battery.

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