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Texas Instruments ups the wireless power game with industry's first Qi dev kit
We have yet to see a flood of Qi-enabled devices at CES, but here's a little something from Texas Instruments that will hopefully boost the number of products supporting this newfangled wireless charging standard. What we're looking at is the bqTESLA, the industry's first Qi-certified wireless power development kit that consists of a single-channel transmitter (presumably the transparent pad with a copper coil underneath), a direct-charge receiver (the black object) and "associated magnetics for applications requiring five watts of power or less" such as cellphones, MP3 players, cameras, etc. Interested techies can pick up one of these toys for $499, or for just $250 throughout CES 2011.
Energizer Qi wireless charging base station spotted in the wild
It's taken quite awhile to go from christening to shipping, but Qi looks just about ready to make its mark on the public. And on Powermat's bottom line. We've known all along that Energizer was a huge proponent of the protocol, and now we're finding that review units are making their way out to the media. YouTube user akaTRENT seems to have gotten his earlier than most, and he's been so kind as to offer up an unboxing of the inductive charging station as well as a sleeve for the iPhone 3GS. We're planning on giving this same setup a whirl in due time, but if you're interested to see how this guy looks in the flesh, there's a play button with your name on it just beyond the break.
Qi charger prototype from Sanyo and NTT DoCoMo seeks out, ruthlessly charges stuff
Wireless charging gear compatible with the Qi standard should be hitting shelves any minute now, but NTT DoCoMo's charging base at CEATEC has a completely unnecessary (and completely awesome) trick up its sleeve to set itself apart from the crowd. The prototype -- developed in concert with Sanyo and bearing the Eneloop brand -- gives you some visual indication that a compatible gadget has been detected by displaying a ring of blue LEDs that converges around the device to be charged once you set it down. It's a neat effect... and you can see it unfold on the video after the break. No indication on whether NTT DoCoMo will actually be bringing its own branded Qi charger to market, but clearly, these products are nearly production-ready. %Gallery-104373%
Global Qi wireless power standard released, Energizer and Sanyo announce products
It's no good buying an eCoupled inductive charger if it won't work with your Powermat, or your Touchstone. Non-standard chargers suck, so we're glad to see that the Global Qi wireless power standard has been released, and the first products have been announced. A number of companies, Nokia and RIM to name but a few, have signed on their support, with Energizer stepping up first with the Energizer Inductive Charger. When it releases this fall it will initially work with charging sleeves for the iPhone 3G/S and BlackBerry Curve 8900, but we presume others will be coming. More promising is Sanyo, which is designing battery packs "without making any change in designs and aspects of existing mobile devices." In other words: they'll look and act like a normal battery pack, but also be able to be charged wirelessly. Beware, ubiquitous micro-USB charger: your days are numbered.
Qi wireless power standard finalized, universal contactless chargers look closer to reality than ever
The Wireless Power Consortium took a big step forward this past week with the confirmation that its precocious Qi interoperability standard has been finalized. Composed of three documents setting out the interface, performance and compliance requirements, the new dictum has set itself the not inconsiderable challenge of making wireless charging universal, so that any Qi-approved phone can soak up juice from any Qi-verified base station, dock or omnitool. This first spec is limited to devices requiring no more than 5 Watts, an appropriately humble early goal, though cauldrons are already bubbling with ideas for laptops and the like. We just hope the impressive list of big time companies on the Consortium will succeed in taking Qi into the mainstream -- who here hasn't dreamt of their phone being compatible with the Touchstone? [Thanks, MrStringTheorist]
Pixel Qi dual-mode displays sell out, in a good way
Unless you're in the music biz, selling out is generally considered a good thing just as long as you can restock, pronto like, to meet consumer demand. So we're sure Mary Lou Jepsen is roiling in her jollies knowing that the first batch of $275 dual-mode Pixel Qi displays have sold out after less than 24 hours of retail availability. You can pre-order now for a second shipment of the 10.1-inch reflective LCDs expected to arrive on MakerShed by the middle of next week. Until then, we patiently wait for the first-hand DIY experiences to begin trickling in.
Pixel Qi netbook display replacement kit finally on sale
You've waited and waited and, let's face it, waited for this day to arrrive. Now Pixel Qi's 10.1-inch display is available for DIY types looking to swap out their LCD for a dual-mode reflective Qi display capable of slipping into a power-sipping e-paper mode that's visible even in direct sunlight. It's only certified to work with Samsung N130 and Lenovo S10-2 machines but we're sure you'll figure out how to slide this pup into the Acer or ASUS netbook of your dreams. On sale now at MakerShed for $275, the swap reportedly takes about 5 minutes using only a screwdriver. So get out of here -- stop waiting for the majors to introduce a Pixel Qi netbook, it's time to build your own and put those claims of a 20+ hour laptop to the test. [Thanks, Philpax]
Innoversal's Pixel Qi-based tablet prototype: $530 for the display of your dreams
We already had the opportunity to sit down and tinker with a slew of Pixel Qi-based prototype devices here in Taipei, but one in particular managed to catch our eye in a rather surprising location. Innoversal, a new company here in Taiwan just looking to change the world, found itself hosting a striking 10.1-inch device that grabbed our heartstrings and wouldn't let go. The highlight of the starlet was the expansive 3Qi capacitive touchpanel, with a 1,024 x 600 resolution and the ability to save battery life by flipping the backlight off when in broad daylight. The current build was relying on a trio of ambient light sensors to determine whether or not the backlight would be on, but we begged and pleaded for the company to implement a dedicated on / off toggle switch along the border before shipping it out. Speaking of which, Innoversal will most likely ship the product under its own branding here in Taiwan, but it's certainly open to selling the design to other major manufacturers who may wish to slap their own logo on there. If all goes well, we could see it first take off this September (globally), with a 16GB + 3G / WiFi model retailing for between $530 and $550. So, what's that get you? Besides the best power-saving mobile display this world has ever seen (seriously, the crispness and viewing angles were extraordinary), you'll also get a 1.66GHz Atom N450 processor, an integrated SSD (16GB, 32GB and 64GB capacities will be available), an SDHC card slot, 8 megapixel camera, 3.5mm headphone jack, a SIM card slot (for 3G data), USB 2.0 connectivity, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and a 6-cell (5,300mAh) battery to boot. We were told that the device will support Windows 7, Android, Ubuntu and Chrome OS, with the former two being on display at the show. The working mockup that was on display was sufficiently lightweight and sturdy, and we'd be fibbing to ourselves if we said we weren't giddy about the prospect of holding a finalized unit before Old Man Winter comes to visit. Hop on past the break for a video overview... or else. %Gallery-94347%
Qi Hardware's tiny, hackable Ben NanoNote now shipping
It's been something of a long road to this point (beginning with the company being founded by some laid off OpenMoko employees), but Qi Hardware's ultra-compact, open source Ben NanoNote (actually, 本 NanoNote) is now shipping for just $99. That will get you a bare bones device that can simply be used as a Linux-based "handheld laptop" out of the box or, as the company hopes, be turned into anything from a PMP to an offline Wikipedia device. Something along those lines would seem to be the most practical, considering the device only has a 3-inch 320 x 240 display, along with some similarly basic specs including a 336 MHz XBurst Jz4720 CPU, 32MB of RAM, 2GB of flash storage, and a microSD card slot for expansion. Head on past the break for a look under the lid.
Wireless power takes another baby step at CES 2010 with Qi standard
It's our third year visiting with Fulton Innovation and the eCoupled wireless power booth at CES, and once again there's significant progress to be seen -- this time in the form of actual shipping products like the Case-mate Hug and the Dell Latitude Z. Fulton's really pushing the industry standard angle with eCoupled -- it's a founding member of the Wireless Power Consortium, which is just a few months away from finalizing a standard based on eCoupled called Qi. Qi's going to be backed by some pretty big names: Motorola, Nokia, RIM, Energizer, Duracell, Samsung, and Philips are all members of the WPC, along with several others, and the goal is for all this stuff to seamlessly play together. Fulton had some pretty hot demos to show off of the standard in action, including a Toyota Avalon interior with functional spots for two phones, a GPS, a Bluetooth headset, and a netbook, a slick first-class airline seat with a charging table, and a hotel room with several power points -- including a slick motorized dock built into the desk for the Dell. Our favorite demo, however, was a wall sconce: an eCoupled point in the wall was used to power a light fixture, which was then swapped for a digital photo frame. Nifty stuff, indeed. Still, the big challenge for Fulton and the WPC is going to be actually shipping a bunch of these products this year -- standards are nice, but without gear in hand they're meaningless, and the rival PowerMat crew has been making a pretty big push of its own. We'll see what happens in the next few months -- and how much has changed at CES 2011. Check a couple videos after the break! %Gallery-82951%
RIM comes onboard with the Wireless Power Consortium
Look's like the Wireless Power Consortium can add another one of the big boys onto its list of powerful allies. Research in Motion's come on board as a member of the organization, which now includes 21 manufacturers. The Wireless Power Consortium's noble quest, you'll remember, is to develop a wireless charging standard, which it calls the Qi. The group also announced simultaneously that it's successfully finished the second round of prototype testing. RIM's support is adds further hope to the pursuit of said standard, after Nokia joined the cause in October.
Nokia plugs itself into the Wireless Power Consortium
The Wireless Power Consortium has already managed to attract some pretty big players in the industry (including Philips, Sanyo and Duracell), but it's now bolstered its roster with one of its biggest heavyweights yet by announcing that Nokia has signed on as a full member. Of course, Nokia isn't making any firm promises about incorporating the Consortium's Qi wireless power standard into its products just yet, but it does say that the technology "carries significant potential to enhance consumer experience of battery charging," and that it "aims to meet these consumer expectations." For its part, the Wireless Power Consortium is unsurprisingly thrilled to have Nokia on board, noting that the move "significantly expands the potential market traction of the Qi wireless charging standard."
Qi Smartbook U1000 rolls with WinMo, few buttons
By definition, the Qi Smartbook U1000 isn't a smartbook. It's more like a touchscreen MID, but we'll let the semantics slide (just this once). Based on a 624MHz CPU, Windows Mobile 6.1 and a 5-inch touch panel (800 x 480), this Chinese device is also equipped with WiFi and a mysterious camera 'round back. Sadly, that's about all we know, but those who find themselves in Shenzhen should definitely check it out. Just be wary of those KIRFs -- we hear they're kind of prevalent over there.[Via GadgetMix]
Wireless power standard almost here, named Qi (of all things)
We're not sure whether to chalk this up to the fact that every good brand name is already taken, or to some folks' delight in torturing us with obscure pronunciation -- but whatever the case may be, it looks like the Wireless Power Consortium have finally come up with a spec for Wireless Power, and for it they're using a name (and logo) probably dreamt up after repeat viewings of Big Trouble in Little China: Qi. Pronounced Ch'i (you know, as in "prana" or "life force"), the first universal wireless standard has achieved 0.95 for interoperability testing a mere seven months after setting their eyes on the goal, paving the way for an "accelerated" acceptance of 1.0, according to a company spokesperson. The Qi standard applies to devices 5 watts and below, and members of the consortium include Duracell, National Semiconductor, Olympus, Philips, Samsung, Sanyo, ST-Ericsson, and Shenzhen Sangfei Consumer Communications. At any rate, it's nice to hear about something happening ahead of schedule for once. [Via SlashGear]
Motorola patenting Feng Shui-enabled cellphone
Motorola knows what a pain it can be to hire a consultant every time you need to get your Feng Shui-on at a new location, so they're trying to patent a method for measuring chi levels right from your cellphone. In order to provide the user with the greatest amount of must-have qi, phones equipped with this tech would use nearly every available sensor -- and one dedicated one -- to develop an accurate overview of the environment: the camera is used for evalulating color saturation and spacial relationships, the GPS reciever for determining proximity to "undesirable" sites, the microphone for gauging ambient noise levels, and even the radio for measuring AM/FM transmission strength from the nearest towers. Since no Feng Shui reading would be possible without knowing which direction the main wall of the building faces, the Moto patent also calls for the inclusion of a "three-dimensional Hall-effect sensor" that would measure the strength of electromagnetic fields to deliver digital compass readings. While this all seems a bit complicated, software would take care of most of the hard work, essentially allowing the user to snap a few photos and sit back as the phone's sophisticated chi engine leads him/her to a harmonious balance.[Via Unwired View]