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JBL Power Up speaker and wireless charger combo now shipping, whimsically priced around $250
The fruit of JBL's partnership with Espoo, the Power Up wireless speaker and induction charger, has just landed at AT&T and Verizon. Aside from receiving your beats over Bluetooth, the 2 x 10-watt speaker can also charge Qi-compatible devices like the Lumia 920 and the Nexus 4. It uses TI's latest power chip for an enlarged charging area, and packs NFC for quick pairing. Unlike TDK's more portable option, the Power Up retains its power cable, but it does come in cheaper than its rival at $250. (Or, for some reason, $300 if you buy it at AT&T.) [Thanks, Brandon]
TI details the wireless power chip in the Lumia 920, offers four times the charging area
If you're one of the first on your block to have picked up a Nokia Lumia 920, you might wonder why it's so forgiving with where you set it down on the wireless charging pad. TI is more than willing to share. The 920, 820, Fatboy charging pillow and JBL PowerUp speaker all use a new TI bq500410A controller whose support for new transmitters gives it a charging area four times larger than we're used to. The 2.76 by 0.79 inches of coverage might not sound like much, but it's much wider than the previous 0.71 square inches while preserving a 70 percent efficiency and a safety cutoff if something gets in between. As a companion, there's a bq51050B chip launching at the same time that represents the first Qi receiver with its own built-in battery charger, which TI claims can charge more quickly and in less space than its rivals. Anyone embracing Nokia's vision of Windows Phone 8 can get their hands on devices using the wireless power chips today; we're only left hoping that TI's official news means other phone makers can tag along.
JBL intros Power Up speaker to charge your Nokia Lumia 920, pair over NFC
JBL just kicked out a pair of new accessories to go with that new Nokia Lumia 920. The Power Up speaker does more than just start Bluetooth music sharing over NFC -- it has a Qi wireless charging point so that you can just leave your shiny new Windows Phone on top for an extra jolt of energy without looking for that FatBoy pillow. We'll provide more details as they emerge following Nokia's special event.%Gallery-164395% Dana Wollman contributed to this report.
