Wireless Power Group Has 'Qi' Prototypes 117
judgecorp writes "Steady progress on inductive wireless charging. There are now certified prototypes of chargers for Blackberry and iPhone devices that meet the Qi specification of the Wireless Power Consortium, which was announced last year. The spec has advanced from version 0.95 to 1.0, too."
They are still sorting out cell phones (Score:2, Interesting)
Efficient? Better in any way? (Score:3, Interesting)
Call me a conservative engineer... I don't care.
What's the point of this? Is it more efficient (using less electricity) than just plugging a cable into a small socket on the side of the phone? I doubt it.
It easier to use than plugging in a cable in a socket? Hardly.
Is the charger easier to replace than those standard nokia chargers that everyone has several of lying around? Doubt it.
Will it be standardized? That'd be lovely. But normal chargers should have been standardized long ago.
The only added value I see is that you can now completely waterproof a gadget.
I can see the added value for things like electric toothbrushes - those must be encased in a water proof shell. But the whole point of phones is that you replace them every 1-2 years. Making them stronger and water proof is bad business.
Is a de-charge possible? (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Efficient? Better in any way? (Score:3, Interesting)
What's the efficiency of these? The last thing the world needs right now is another way to waste energy.
Still ... if it's expensive enough and leads to standardization it might mean less overall waste then having dozens of chargers for everything.