Japan’s electronics makers have been working on methanol-based fuel cells for years, noting that the latest small electronic gizmos’ thirst for power is outstripping the Lithium Ion battery’s abilities, and also appreciating the benefit of near instant “recharge” by inserting new fuel. Prototype cells and chargers have been on display at recent trade shows, and manufacturers estimate that commercial versions will be available within a couple of years.
This is exactly the article I do not like to see on OSNews.com,
We already have Slashdot, haven’t we?
I agree too…
Maybe there are not so many OS News today… And David is filling the breaks. 🙂
The link doesn’t work, anyway…
Oops… sorry, it seems to work now.
The year 2007 is going to be very interesting to see.
I’d rather see this sort of technology for notebooks such that you can work on them for more than 24 ours. I never found the batteries a problem with cell phones because most conversation during a day hardly exceed the battery’s life. With notebooks, on the other hand, you’d like to work without an electricity outlet for at least a whole day.
Totally agree with you.
Notebook battery life still has a lot to improve.
But I suppose these fuel cells would be nicer for the environment, so it’s a good development nevetheless.
Methanol is both highly toxic and highly flammable. It is very unlikely that airlines will allow these devices to be taken aboard aircraft.
from the article:
“At last October’s Ceatec Japan 2004 exhibition, Iriuchijima showed prototype rechargers from Hitachi and Toshiba, saying that improved versions would be on the market in 2006. That schedule has slipped to January 2007, mainly because that’s when regulations will be changed to allow passengers to carry methanol on planes, he said.”
You’ve got to get a grin when your phone tells you “go down this street. turn left. go 50m. turn right. enter store. purchase more fuel. fill me up.”
Now when they have a fuel cell that runs on ethanol… well that will be even more fun.
It’s not OS news. But it will change the world, hopefully, away from vast waste piles of batteries.
I’m more of a fan of betavoltaics myself. Tritium batteries would be good for damned near 12 years if ever someone were to take the time to make the technology practical… *grumble*
I’m pretty sure these will not be let on any domestic or international plane… unless of course you are in the USA and you are able to make a naked flame with it for lighting cigarettes… then it would be exempt.
So, your phone or laptop would be able to do everything then including lifting an entire laptop up to your face to light cigarretes.
Regular cellphones batteries can explode too, if they suffer a really bad impact or if their quality is low.
I read at the newspaper yesterday that some guy’s cellphone exploded because he used a no-brand battery replacement. And this is second case this month here at Rio de Janeiro.
On the brigth side, methanol is a renovable energy source, since you can obtain it from sugar cane, and I guess its a lot cheaper than lithium. Here at Brazil we already use it to fuel our cars, our gasoline is really a 40% methanol – 60% gasoline mixture, and this gives actualy a performance boost since methalnol has more octanage.
Dear brazilian brother:
As far as I know what you obtain from sugar cane is ETHANOL, not METHANOL. I know that because we make it here too (Argentina). Ethanol is common alcohol, methanol is highly toxic. And yes, it is renovable. Feel free to amend me if I’m wrong.
Cheers!
Another terrorist tool to use on a plane…BOOM
Could have sworn I’d already seen third-party fuel cells for common phone models selling in convenience stores here in Alabama.
Funny I read a week ago an article about how this technology is announced every year and postponed every year…
It has been announced for 2004, 2005, 2006… and now 2007.
I am not holding my breath.
>Another terrorist tool to use on a plane…BOOM
That’s exactly what the terorists want you to do, run. We should let a bunch of crazies determine how we should we, if we do, they’ve won the battle.
I think that NEC has come the closest to market deployment of methanol-fueled portable power. What I would like to see next is availability of the ethanol-fueled cells, i.e. what Shelley Minteer et al (from St Louis University) have been developing. The ethanol-based cells will be a great step forward; Larry.
The price of charging your normal phone battery is probably around a dollar a month.
IIRC butane lighter canisters cost around 4-5 dollars per can. How often will you have to buy a new can??? Otherwise you’re looking at a added cost vs a normal battery.
Sorry but I think Toshiba or some Japanese company invented a battery that could recharge in 1 minute to 80% charge and a few minutes later to 100% charge. While this is going to be for the hybrid car industry at first it’s not hard to make a smaller battery. Then it’s a matter of placing your phone in one of those new field chargers people have designed.
I just get the feeling that the cost will outweigh the inconvience of the battery.