BatteryLife
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Animated wallpaper running on a jailbroken iPad
In case you needed even more distraction and less battery life from your iPad, MacStories wants you to know about the ultimate hack just for you. For jailbroken iPads, a new app allows for having animated backgrounds just like Android devices. Called vWallpaper, it enables a video resized for the device's screen to be used an animated background, even while browsing and viewing apps. Of course, you could just run Android on your iPad and skip the hack, but that's more than some people are willing to do. My buddy runs an animated background on his Android phone (which makes it impossible for me to find the app I want, personally), but he seems to like the look of it. His battery life definitely suffers though, and while the iPad definitely has decent battery life, I would think this hack would cut it down significantly. If you want to do it anyway (and have a jailbroken iPad), you can get vWallpaper from the danstaface repo. Click Read More to check out a video of vWallpaper in action.
Nissan Leaf blessed with 99MPG 'equivalent' sticker, roundtable arguments ensue
Cue the pundits. Nissan's incoming Leaf has just nabbed an official EPA sticker, with a mind-melting 99MPG "equivalent" rating set to grace every single window. That'll undoubtedly catch eyes, but it's also likely to spur a huge debate on what "miles per gallon" truly means when you're throwing a battery into the mix. We actually had the pleasure of driving one ourselves late last month, but we weren't able to take off on any extended joyrides to really put MPG claims to the test. At any rate, the 99 rating breaks down to 106MPG in the city and 92MPG on the highway, but there's quite a bit of fuzzy math here that gas guzzlers aren't accustomed to considering. Nissan claims that the EPA uses a formula where 33.7 kWhs are equivalent to one gallon of gasoline energy, and that the entity also found the Leaf's efficiency to be 3.4 miles per kWh. Given that the car has a 24 kWh battery pack and can go 73 miles officially, then the EPA says it could theoretically go 99 miles if it had a 33.7 kWh pack. Still, the Leaf has to await its other label from the FTC, but it's apt to show a range of 96 to 110 miles of range. Head on past the break for the full presser.
Adobe CEO: Flash battery life depends on hardware acceleration, MacBook Air update in testing right now
Getting a little more oomph out of your MacBook Air after giving Flash the boot? Adobe's Shantanu Narayen stopped just short of saying that's Apple's fault for not handing Adobe a device ahead of time. We asked the CEO what the greater battery life sans flash in Apple's new laptop meant for the platform (vis-a-vis HTML5) just a few minutes ago. He said it's really all about optimizing for silicon: "When we have access to hardware acceleration, we've proven that Flash has equal or better performance on every platform." You wouldn't be blamed for thinking that sentence a cop-out, but that's actually not the case -- the chief executive says they've presently got a Macbook Air in the labs and have an optimized beta of Flash for the device in testing even as we speak.
Hybrid batteries tease big energy capacity while charging in seconds
Ioxus Inc. is an up and comer in the energy storage industry that has plans this Monday to announce a new hybrid storage device that it hopes will radically alter batteries used in the auto, medical, and consumer electronics industries. The teased product is said to be roughly the size of a typical C-cell battery and combines the fast charge / discharge benefits of ultracapacitors with the impressive energy-to-weight ratio of a lithium-ion electrode. As a result, Ioxus says the hybrid devices can store more than double the energy of traditional ultracapacitors and charge in a matter of seconds. The catch is that the hybrids have shorter life spans of 20,000 cycles compared to millions of cycles for typical ultracapacitors. We're also taking this with a grain of skepticism until these claims are proven in the field. Some brief digging though did unearth an article written by MIT researchers and published in Scientific American last year that discusses the possible benefits of supercharging lithium-ion cells -- which is encouraging. The first iteration could be used to power a host of devices like off-the-grid lighting or power tools. Use in larger systems like the regenerative breaks of electric cars however won't be possible until the second generation arrives -- which the CEO pegged as sometime in the first quarter of next year.
Adobe CTO defends Flash against battery life criticism
In response to Ars Technica's recent finding that running Adobe's Flash Player on the new MacBook Air cut battery life by up to a third, Adobe's CTO, Kevin Lynch, has come out in in defense of his company's plugin during an interview with Fast Company. "It's a false argument to make," he claims. "When you're displaying content, any technology will use more power to display, versus not displaying content. If you used HTML5, for example, to display advertisements, that would use as much or more processing power than what Flash uses." That's a nice theory, but that's not what Ars Technica's battery life results show. Given that multiple advertising services now fall back on HTML5 or a static ad in order to serve ads to devices which either don't have Flash installed or don't support it, it's unlikely that Ars Technica's testers were "missing out" on much content. Note that Ars Technica's tests didn't involve video playback at all, only some light web browsing; the only differentiating factor in their battery life results was whether website ads were running via Flash Player or not. The argument isn't sounding so "false" anymore. Lynch also bemoaned Apple's stance on Flash, claiming the company is "inciting" and "condoning" attacks on the plugin. "We don't think it's good for the web to have aspects closed off -- a blockade of certain types of expression. There's a decade of content out there that you just can't view on Apple's device, and I think that's not only hurtful to Adobe, but hurtful to everyone that created that content." My translation: "Apple shouldn't be the gatekeeper of the Web's video content. Adobe should." [via iPodnn]
Having Flash installed on your MacBook can reduce battery runtime by 33%
As if Adobe Flash didn't have enough going against it already. Now it appears that, according to tests done by Ars Technica, having Flash installed on your laptop can reduce your battery runtime by a third. Ars Technica was running battery tests on the new 11-inch MacBook Air. With the Flash player plug-in installed, the 11-inch Air got just 4 hours of battery life. Once they deleted Flash, the Air's battery life rose to a whopping 6 hours. Ars Technica speculates that this is another reason that Apple decided to leave Flash off MacBook Airs (instead of just to make sure that users would download the latest version). It's important to note that Ars Technica isn't saying simply having the Flash plug-in installed on the Air reduces battery time, but that when visiting the same websites in Safari with Flash installed and then with Flash uninstalled, Flash ads became static ads, thus resulting in the higher battery life. In the end, Ars found that "Flash-based ads kept the CPU running far more than seemed necessary." While Ars only tested the Flash battery drainage on a MacBook Air, it seems logical to assume that similar battery runtime results would be seen on other MacBooks and PC laptops. I'm about to test this out myself by removing Flash from my 15-inch MacBook Pro and seeing if my wireless web surfing time increases. Besides uninstalling Flash completely from your machine, there are a number of Safari extensions that allow you to disable or enable Flash with a click.
MacBook Air battery shown to last two hours longer when browsing the web sans Flash
Let's be honest, Apple's claim that it neglected to preload Flash on the new MacBook Airs so that users themselves could download and install the latest (and safest) version was a bit of a red herring. Behind that thin veil of corporate courtesy, we're now seeing a pretty potent cause for Apple's dumping of Adobe's wares. Ars Technica's review of the 11-inch Air discovered that the machine could crank its way through six hours of web browsing when Flash was nowhere near it, but only four hours with Flash installed and giving it "the full web experience." The primary culprit was Adobe's penchant for using CPU cycles to display animated ads, which were typically replaced by static imagery in the absence of the requisite software. So yeah, it's not a surprise that a "richer" web would require more resources, but it doesn't speak well for Flash's efficiency to find a laptop loses a third of its longevity when running it.
Notion Ink founder claims Adam tablet will go 15+ hours on a charge
The Pixel Qi and Tegra 2-packing Notion Ink Adam has long been one of our favorite pieces of perfectly plausible vaporware, but founder Rohan Shravan's just made a pretty fantastic claim -- he says he's getting a minimum of 15 hours of battery life from his personal tablet and calculates you'll get up to twenty with the 24Wh, potentially user-replaceable battery nestled in its frame. While those are the figures for the $498 transflective version of the tablet and not the $399 juice-gulping LCD, they're still so stellar that they could easily make or break the Adam's sales depending on their veracity. Oh Rohan, please don't let us down.
Shocker! Nintendo 3DS will have shorter battery life than DS
Who'd have thought that adding extra grunt under the hood, a glasses-free 3D display up top, a wireless "tag mode," and automatic wireless updates to the 3DS would serve to degrade battery life? Certainly not our naive souls. The same Q&A that informed us about Nintendo's Spot Pass plans for the 3DS has been found to also contain some commentary on battery endurance from Satoru Iwata himself. The company chief says "it is inevitable that Nintendo 3DS will be a device which requires more frequent recharging than Nintendo DS" and notes that as a major reason why a charging cradle will be bundled into the new console's retail package. With tongue firmly wedged in cheek, Iwata suggests that perhaps Nintendo ought to advise users to deposit the 3DS into its cradle as soon as they get home, but the overall point is as clear as it is obvious: your more powerful handheld will require more power.
DoE forecasts far cheaper, lighter, longer-lasting EV batteries by 2015
Dippin' in a Tesla is an expensive proposition, as we're sure you're well aware, but the US Department of Energy seems certain the cost of electric vehicles -- or at least their all-important rechargeable batteries -- will come down to reasonable levels. The government estimates a stack of cells good for 100 miles will drop to $10,000 by the end of 2015, and that 40-mile batteries for PHEVs will sink to $4,000 in the same timeframe -- both around one-third of what the containers presently cost. On the physical front, portly packages of Li-ion presently weigh 333kg (about 734 pounds) per 100 miles of range, but are expected to slim down to 222kg (489 pounds) by 2015, and shed weight precipitously in following years. Like any weather forecast, the figures are subject to the prevailing wind, but it's looking like average Americans may one day have use for all those free charging stations. Find the full report at our source link.
Nexus One sees red, nearly doubles battery life? (video)
These five Nexus One smartphones may seem to have defects, but there's actually nothing wrong with their AMOLED screens -- the funky colors are an attempt to improve battery life by turning off unnecessary sub-pixel LEDs. Hooking up his handset to an industrial power meter, Android engineer Jeff Sharkey discovered a blood-red screen drew 42 percent less current than full color -- the least of any combination by far -- purportedly doubling the effective battery life of the phone. While you're probably not going to be able to test the requisite software patch for yourself unless you're mildly familiar with Google code, you'll find a video of the crimson wonder after the break to fuel your dreams of a eyestrain-free astronomy cheat sheet... and Android bullfighting, of course.
Multitasking in iOS 4 is not a magical sparkle pony
As we wait for iOS4 to be released, I think it's important to try to help folks keep reasonable expectations for what iOS 4 will and won't do, especially as it relates to "multitasking." Apple has to take some of the blame for this hype, especially when it's listed as the #1 feature of iOS 4, saying "Now you can run your favorite third-party apps - and switch between them instantly - without slowing down the performance of the foreground app or draining the battery unnecessarily."1 Did you notice that 1? The big print giveth and the little print taketh away. Down at the bottom of the page, Apple tells you that multitasking is "available with apps that have been developed to work with iOS 4." That means that any app that isn't tweaked to be multitasking-aware simply won't play nice with the feature. And even that isn't the whole truth. Read on for more...
Leaked Intel roadmap reveals six new notebook CPUs for 2010, better battery life in 2011
We love the smell of silicon in the morning -- especially when it emanates from one of Intel's legendary leaked roadmaps. Today, we've stumbled across one with specs for Chipzilla's entire fall collection of mobile chips, and a couple new details about that desiccated overpass the execs keep talking about. First up, it appears sources were spot-on about the Core i7s and Core i5s we heard about last week, but the 2.66GHz / 3.33 GHz Core i5-580M won't be the only dual-core CPU to look for in Q4; it will be sandwiched between the 2.8GHz Core i7-640M (which turbos to 3.46GHz) and the 2.66GHz / 3.2GHz Core i5-560M -- all of which peak at a conservative 35 watts. True juice sippers will want a 15W CULV, however, and it seems more of those exist than Intel initially let on; Q4 will see a high-end Core i7-680UM that starts at 1.46GHz and turbos up to 2.53GHz and a 1.33GHz / 2.13GHz Core i5-560UM, plus a 25W 2.26GHz Core i7-660LM low-voltage chip will also join the fray. All these new dual-cores will have on-die Intel HD Graphics in one form or another, but all are also stopgaps until Intel's 32nm "Huron River" platform debuts in the first quarter of 2011. Then, we'll get WiMAX, WiDi and Intel Bluetooth alongside an intriguing new concept dubbed Zero Power ODD, which promises a power-saving sleep mode for our noisy optical disc drives (see more coverage link) and the promise of enough battery life to play two full Blu-rays on a single charge. Don't believe us? See the slides below for more. %Gallery-93924%
10-hour MacBook delicately disassembled, battery transplanted into earlier model
Not a single day passes since Apple refreshed the MacBook and already the fine folks at iFixit are on the job. For the most part, its full disassembly is business as usual, as only a few components -- CPU, GPU and battery -- have changed since the last go-round. That last is of special interest, however, because iFixit says the battery is exactly the same shape as its former -- all you have to do to get an extra 350 mAh for your existing plastic MacBook is to drop in a refreshed battery. Mind you, the new cells weigh more and it's likely the new silicon that's actually responsible for 10 hours of battery life, but should your Li-ion pack fail under warranty, your older MacBook might be returned with more juice than you'd bargained for. See the full teardown at our source link.
Google's Larry Page says there's 'something wrong' if your Android phone's battery doesn't last all day
Cellphones and batteries. It's an eternal struggle, but one that Google's Larry Page says should at least be manageable. That topic arose at the recent Google Zeitgeist forum, where Page responded to a question about battery life on Android phones by saying that he actually found it to be "pretty good," and that "if you are not getting a day, there is something wrong." That prompted Google CEO Eric Schmidt to chime in and explain that the main culprit for excessive battery use on the phones is the transmit / receive circuit, which he says some apps are "not particularly smart about" using.
HyperMac external battery packs refreshed with iPad charging support
We're pretty big fans of the HyperMac external batteries here at Engadget, as they've saved us on numerous occasions from becoming mindlessly bored on coast-to-coast flights by keeping our laptops humming for a few more hours. Unfortunately, the integrated USB port -- while handy -- isn't up for handling Apple's new iPad, which requires a 10 watt USB adapter to even charge. We tested our lab iPad on our existing 222Wh HyperMac, and sure enough, the screen you're peering at above is what we saw (read: "Not Charging") -- though it does seem to power the device as to not drain what's left of the battery while connected. In order to remedy said quandary, the folks at Sanho have announced a new line of HyperMac batteries that support iPad charging, but unfortunately for you existing users, every available upgrade path involves shelling out more cash for a new pack. The revamped devices will be available in four different capacities: 60Wh ($169), 100Wh ($269), 150Wh ($369) and 222Wh ($469), able to extend the iPad 25Wh rated internal battery by 2 to 9 times, giving a total run-time of between 34 to 99 hours. Sanho claims these will be rechargeable up to 1,000 times and will include a one-year warranty, so if you're interested, you can place your pre-order now and await a shipment notification in around a fortnight.
Samsung MP3 player goes 60 hours on a charge
Once upon a time, it meant something to have a digital audio player that went upwards of two full days without needing a charge. Since then, we've seen many, many examples, and it's just not that exciting anymore. But you know what? It's still not that often we see a DAP with 60 hours of battery life and a 3-inch, QVGA TFT LCD that plays ten hours of DivX, Xvid, WMV and H.264 video to boot, so we think Samsung's YP-RB might deserve an honorable mention. The player was recently spotted in a Korean distributor catalog in 4, 8 and 16GB varieties, and we hope (but doubt, given tricky patent licensing issues) that we'll see one stateside sometime soon.
Intel reaches for the 'smartphone zone' with Moorestown-based Atom Z6, comes up shorthanded
We've seen the future of Intel's mobile platform, and it isn't all roses and sunshine. Three years after the chipmaker told us Moorestown would reduce Atom's energy consumption by a factor of 20, company execs told us earlier today that they've more than reached that goal with the new Z6xx series. Problem is, in the smartphone realm Intel's competitors haven't been sitting idle; according to one of Chipzilla's cantaloupe-and-magenta bar charts, it seems the company has merely caught up in terms of battery life. That's not to say the chips aren't worlds better than previous Atoms -- Intel sees 1.5GHz smartphone processors that slay Snapdragons and up to 1.9GHz in a tablet PC variety -- but 5 hours of web browsing is most decidedly not the 24 hours of productivity Intel previously promised. Besides, who knows: Qualcomm also has a 1.5GHz SoC in the works, though it may not be available by the time Intel's chips ship in the second half of the year. None of this is to say that Intel won't continue to dominate in the netbook marketplace -- we shudder to think at the potential when combining a nice, chunky battery with Intel's nearly leakproof new chips, and perhaps a small serving of switchable graphics while we're at it. But without a single new MID or smartphone to show us this morning -- Aava Mobile and OpenPeak's offerings seemed unchanged from our previous encounters -- we're not sure if the company's other mobile ambitions have any sway. Not technical enough of a discussion for you? Peruse our gallery for the nitty-gritty. %Gallery-92318%
Confirmed: "Not charging" iPad does recharge
When TUAW reader Gregory P. wrote to us yesterday, claiming his "Not charging" iPad was, in fact, charging, I admit I was pretty skeptical. After all, the new iPads have been widely reported to be incompatible with USB hubs and lower-power USB ports. Gregory claimed to have charged up his new iPad even when the device reported that it wasn't charging. Gregory writes that he plugged in his 63% iPad into his Lenovo T61, where it reported itself to be "Not charging." Several hours later, the iPad reported an 87% battery level. As I've been plugging directly into A/C power or using a dedicated onboard port on one of my desktop because of those reports, I decided to give Gregory's suggestion a real world try. Last night, I plugged in my 83% iPad into one of my USB hubs. The unit reported "Not charging", as expected. Regardless, I left it plugged in and revisited it this morning. Sure enough, my battery was completely 100% charged. As Gregory wrote in his letter, "Maybe when it says it's not charging it is just charging slower due to less voltage or something, but it is actually charging!" It worked for me. Results may not be typical, so make sure to chime in below in the comments to let us know if it worked for you too.
Hitachi claims secret chemical formula will improve battery cathodes, double longevity
Before lithium-ion batteries, portable gadgets were a nightmare, forcing road warriors and Discman-toting teens to either swap disposable cells or deal with rechargables that (with few exceptions) were tricky to recharge. Of course, Li-ion batteries also have a downside: as laptop and cell phone users have no doubt found out, they too become disposable before long. One reason why is that acid in the electrolyte can corrode the cathode material -- and now, Hitachi claims it's found a way to strengthen its own. Using an undisclosed combination of elements to replace some of the manganese used in the company's cathodes, Hitachi claims they can strengthen their crystalline configuration to resist acid, reduce cost, and best of all, double the usable life of a lithium-ion cell to about ten years. We've heard similar claims before, of course, with other battery manufacturers promising us twenty years, but it looks like this technology might make it out of the lab. NEDO, a Japanese government organization, has commissioned Hitachi to bring these batteries to life for industrial applications like wind farms. Cell phones, sadly, will have to wait.
