batteries

LAS VEGAS--What happens when you put a couple of SpaceX engineers together with some old-school batteries? You get a new-school approach to battery power. Tetherboard calls the Tethercell "the world's first app-enabled smart battery." Wait, don't fall asleep, this is actually pretty cool.

A Tethercell battery is the size of a regular AA battery, but it holds an AAA battery inside its little case. It also holds a Bluetooth chip inside the case. Think of it as a battery turducken. This means you can use your smartphone to control the battery. Oh the power. You can turn off little Billy's toy guitar when you want to take a nap. You can disable your spouse's remote control when you can't stand another second of mindless channel-flipping. You can even set hours when a device can be used.… Read more

LAS VEGAS--Off all the things Eton showed off today at CES 2013, I am most impressed with the BoostSolar charger. It seems to be something that comes in handy when I go on a picnic or do anything under the sun, literally.

The BoostSolar is basically a solar charger on one side and a battery bay on the other side. It comes with one removable 4,000mAh lithium battery. The device's 5-inch solar panel can charge the battery in 10 hours. The battery itself then has enough juice to charge an iPhone twice from empty to full.

The cool … Read more

If you've been hit by a natural disaster recently, you know you can't put too high a price on mobile power supplies.

If your phone is dead and the grid is unreliable, JuiceCans are one way to keep communicating with loved ones.

This Indiegogo fundraising project centers on a stackable USB power pack called a JuiceCan. Add more packs to form a JuiceCane and you get more power. … Read more

The famed iPhone battery drain issue seems have to resurfaced for some people who've made the leap to iOS 6.0.2.

Several users chiming in on Apple's Discussion Forums say the latest iOS update, which was designed to fix Wi-Fi problems, is draining their batteries faster.

One iOS 6.0.2 updater said that "I can usually get through a day with about 75 percent of my battery power remaining. Today I've gone through 90 percent and I've done nothing special with it."

Another said: "Today I barely used my phone at … Read more

Microsoft's Windows 8 Pro version of the Surface tablet got a cool reception today when pricing was disclosed and comments surfaced about battery life, but keep in mind that the core electronics scream ultrabook, not tablet.

After Microsoft announced pricing this morning, it was immediately panned for being too expensive and reportedly getting half of the battery life of the RT version.

Both legitimate concerns. Let's focus on battery life first.

Battery: A quick look at the specs tells you it's pretty close to an ultrabook -- and really thin ultrabooks, not unlike the Surface Pro's … Read more

How much does battery life matter to tablet users? Microsoft may soon find out, first hand.

Microsoft went public today with pricing for its Surface Pro PC/tablet devices -- the Intel-based ones running Windows 8 Pro that will allow users to run their existing third-party apps on the desktop. The 64GB version will be $899; the 128GB version, $999. (Both prices include a pen, but no touch or type keyboard/cover. So add another $120 to $130 for that.)

Pricing is not all the team shared about the Microsoft-branded Surface Pros, due out in January 2013.

Surface Pros are … Read more

If you have a MacBook system that contains dual graphics cards, then you have the option of enabling either the internal graphics or the discrete graphics card, depending on the hardware demands of the tasks you are running.

Integrated or "internal" graphics functions are included on the Intel processor in your Mac (though some prior Mac systems used Nvidia chipsets with Nvidia-branded internal graphics). This graphics option is relatively slow but also draws far less power than a dedicated graphics processor. The integrated graphics are powered fully when the system is turned on.

If your system includes a … Read more

Congrats to Tami M. of North Mankato, Minn., for winning a Zooka speaker bar in last week's Crave giveaway.

Ever found yourself with several gadgets that need recharging when you aren't in a position to juice them all up? This week's giveaway's got the power to help.

The MyCharge Portable Power Bank 6000 is a high-capacity 6000mAh rechargeable battery pack that can simultaneously fuel products including smartphones, iPads, e-readers, and Bluetooth headsets. It comes with Micro- and Mini-USB plugs, plus an Apple dock connector and a full-size USB port, meaning it can power a whole lot of different devices. Handy when the gang's on a camping trip and all the working tree outlets are taken. … Read more

Devices that monitor inner ear activity could eventually be powered by the ear itself, according to research detailed in the current issue of the journal Nature Biotechnology by scientists from MIT, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary (MEEI), and the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology (HST).

They say that for decades we have known the inner ear houses its own natural battery, but this is the first demonstration of its ability to power something external without compromising hearing.… Read more