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ASUS rolls out B series laptops with Boston-Power's Sonata batteries
Well, it looks like HP is no longer your only option to get Boston-Power's "game-changing" Sonata batteries -- ASUS has just announced that it will be offering the long-life lithium-ion batteries as standard equipment on its new B series laptops. Those come in both 14.1-inch and 15.6-inch versions -- the B43 and B53, respectively -- and are available with your choice of Core i5 or Core i7 processors, ATI Mobility Radeon 5470 or integrated Intel graphics, 2GB or 4GB of RAM, a standard 320GB hard drive, and ATI Eyefinity support to accommodate two additional displays. As for those Sonata batteries, while they won't last much longer in day-to-day use, they do promises to work at 80% of their capacity for three years, which is backed up by a three-year warranty. Look for the B53 to hit retailers immediately starting at $1,099, while the B43 is said to be coming "in the near future" for an unspecified price.
HP Pavilion dv8 gets official, complete with HP Long Life battery
HP didn't exactly do the best job keeping this one under wraps, but it's now finally gotten official with its new Pavilion dv8 "entertainment laptop," which packs some fairly impressive (if not all that surprising) specs across the board. That, of course, starts with a big 18.4-inch, full 1,920 x 1,080 screen, and continues along the high-end track with a Core i7 processor, 4GB of RAM (expandable to 8GB), dual 320GB hard drives, NVIDIA GeForce GT230 graphics with 1GB of RAM, a built-in TV tuner, and a Blu-ray drive. Of particular note, the laptop also comes standard with HP's Long Life battery, which makes use of Boston Power's Sonata cells and promises a lifespan three to five times better than traditional lithium-ion batteries. Still no official pricing over here, but it looks like this one will be available in the UK starting October 22nd for £1,300 (or just over $2,000).[Via Shiny Shiny]
Boston-Power's Sonata battery now available for HP laptops
The deal has been done for a while, but today's the first day that Boston-Power's much-vaunted Sonata batteries are actually available from HP, where they're now officially known as the HP Enviro Series batteries. Helping them earn that moniker is a promised "sustainable performance" for a full three years (which HP backs up with a warranty), and a number of other enviro-friendly measures that helped snag the batteries the Nordic Ecolabel certification. Best of all, the batteries are available for no less than 18 different HP laptops right from the get-go and, at $149.99, they don't demand quite the premium price that you might expect. You can't yet get them as an option in a new HP laptop, however, but that's apparently on tap for later this month.Read - Boston-Power press releaseRead - HP order page
Boston-Power signs up HP as first partner for next-gen batteries
It's not exactly much of a surprise given that HP has already shown some considerable interest in the company, but Boston-Power has now finally officially announced that HP will be the first laptop manufacturer to offer its long-lasting (and less explosion-prone) Sonata batteries, which HP will sell under its new Enviro Series brand. According to Boston-Power, those batteries will be available as an optional upgrade in early 2009, and they'll be compatible with the "majority" of HP's consumer laptops. What's more, HP will also be offering a three-year warranty with the batteries, which is apparently the longest one available from a laptop manufacturer and, just as notably, this also apparently marks the first time that a US battery company has sold batteries to one of the top laptop manufacturers. One detail that hasn't been announced just yet, however, is the price, though we're guessing that little detail should be making itself known before too long.
Boston-Power scores $45 million in funding, expands production capacity
It's been a little while since we last heard from the folks at Boston-Power, who've been touting their better, safer laptop batteries for over a year now, but it looks like they've been doing anything but resting on their laurels, and they now seem set to step up their game in a big way. Helping in no small part on that front is a $45 million infusion of new funding they've just announced, which brings the company's total funding to date to a cool $68 million. That announcement also just so happens to coincide with word that the company's sealed a deal with China's GP Batteries to significantly ramp up production of the batteries. According to the company, the partnership with will allow them to increase their production capacity by two to three times over current levels, and churn out over a million Sonata battery cells per month by the end of 2008. There's still no word as to exactly when they'll be available to the general public, however, but as before, all indications point towards HP being among the first to offer 'em.
Boston-Power unveils long-lasting "Sonata" laptop battery
Following through on its promise, upstart Boston-Power has taken the wraps off its much-hyped laptop battery, now officially known as "Sonata," showing off the new-and-improved lithium-ion technology at the DEMO 07 conference that's rolled into Palm Desert, California this week. The company's also taken the opportunity to add some more specificity to its claims, boasting that the Sonata battery will last the life of your laptop and charge faster than any other batteries on the market, filling up to eighty percent capacity in just half an hour -- not to mention be less likely to explode. What's more, the battery will apparently not require any design changes on the part of laptop manufacturers, with HP already working with the company in the testing and validation process -- and presumably set to be one of the first to offer the battery. Not surprisingly, you can also expect the battery to come in at a premium price compared to traditional laptop batteries, although the company isn't saying exactly how much more they'll run. We should find out soon enough, however, with the first laptops using Sonata batteries expected to ship sometime this summer.Read - Boston-Power Press ReleaseRead - CNET, "Start-up to launch safer notebook battery"
Boston-Power promises better, safer lithium-ion batteries
Startup tech company Boston-Power seems to think it has a solution to the many woes plaguing lithium-ion batteries, emerging from stealth mode today (otherwise known as issuing a press release) to announce that it's raised more than $8 million in Series A financing. Not surprisingly, they're keeping most of the details on the batteries themselves under wraps, saying only that they employ "novel chemistry with groundbreaking innovations" to provide longer life, faster charging and -- most importantly to laptop manufacturers potentially looking to buy 'em by the truckload -- greater safety. The first cells using the company's seemingly cure-all technology are set to be available in the first half of next year, although we're guessing that we'll have to wait a little while longer than that for public consumption.[Via EE Times]
