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Laptop Methanol Fuel Cells Promised This Week

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the wait-till-they're-in-vending-machines dept.

securitas writes: "Wired tells us that Germany's Smart Fuel Cell is about to ship the first methanol based fuel cells for laptops and other electronic devices. The company says a 120 milliliter fuel cell can power a 15W notebook for 10 hours, and you can refill it without shutting down."

5 of 249 comments (clear)

  1. Flamable? by Max+von+H. · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I wonder if they'll allow them on planes. Not that a few milliliters of methanol seem dangerous compared to the dozens of tons of kerozene you sit on... But it'd sure be nice to be able to play Quake on those long-haul flights!

    /max

    --
    -- It's always darker before it goes pitch black.
  2. Flight safety(security and breathing)? by Zergwyn · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Now this is a situation that I'm sure airlines will love: business passengers now wanting to carry little bottles of fuel instead of spare batteries for their portables. This will become even worse if cells arrive that run off of pure hydrogen-"PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cells that run on hydrogen." This technology, should it be cheap enough, will get very popular very quickly(who wouldn't love to have a 10 our notebook life that can be extended without shutdown). But I wonder what the policy will be? Ten hours should be plenty for any flight, so maybe airlines will just say that any refills can't be in carry-on bags.

    The other problem is that planes are closed environments. Just as you can't smoke on a plane, it seems possible that any emmisions given off by fuel cells other then water vapor might also cause them to be banned. It may be that the battery won't be abandoned just yet.

  3. Another way to recharge your laptop: Stepcharger by af_robot · · Score: 3, Interesting

    "...With just a brisk pump of your foot, you will never worry about a dead battery again. With just a few pumps of the "STEPCHARGER" you can instantly begin to charge your laptop, cellphone, video camera and much more"
    Homepage
    Image 1
    Image 2

  4. 15W? by Howie · · Score: 3, Interesting

    can power a 15W notebook for 10 hours,

    Anyone know what the typical notebook draws? A brief simpleminded look at my Tosh suggests more than 15W... (label on bottom says 19V, 3.5A. Therefore power is 19x3.5?)

    --
    "don't fall into the fallacy of believing that Perl can solve social problems. Maybe Perl 6 can, but that's a ways off"
  5. Razorblades and razors by DrXym · · Score: 3, Interesting
    It's interesting that companies intend to make tamper-proof cartridges and sell them for $3 to $5 when the raw ingredients sell for cents.


    It sounds like just like razors and razorblades - sell a cheap razor requiring proprietary razorblades and lock-in your consumers to your brand.


    Until companies snap out of this mindset I don't see the technology taking off. You can still make a massive profit by selling them for a buck each or even making refillable ones and your customers will love you for it. The first company to get a clue is likely to see their sales rocket.