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Chargers/Batteries

Batteriser promises to give your batteries up to eight lives

Remember batteries? They used to show up in things like pagers, digital cameras, voice recorders, flashlights and other things that smartphones replaced.  They’re still used in many toys, remote controls and relatively high-tech products such as cordless mice and keyboards as well as smart door locks. And when they run out of juice, they have to be replaced.

Rechargeables are one way to cut down on their consumption. But rechargeables aren’t recommend for all devices and recharging them can be inconvenient. This tends to lead to a lot of waste that could be cut significantly if batteries lasted longer, the goal of Batteriser. According to the campaign, we tap only about 20 percent of an alkaline battery’s energy before it gives up the ghost. The invention is an ultra-thin sleeve that greatly extends the life of the battery with a tiny amount of circuitry that regulates the battery’s voltage. One demonstration shows a flashlight maintaining its output for hours with Batteriser on its batteries while its brightness goes down significantly without it.

Categories
Chargers/Batteries

Lightors Monster batteries finally recharge the way everything else does

The main problem with standard alkaline batteries is that they have to be thrown away after a few hours of use—an inconvenience for users and the environment. Typical rechargeable batteries do away with that issue, but require the use of a separate cradle or other charger.

Lightors Monster batteries largely overcome both of those issues. They can be recharged more than 500 times, and don’t require a separate charger to house the batteries while charging. All that users need to do is plug a micro USB cable into the internal port on the batteries, and it will start recharging instantly. Lightors batteries hold promise thanks to their convenience, especially while traveling. The fact that they don’t require a separate charging device while at home or in an office, however, is not a huge selling point. That’s because they still require a separate device for recharging in the form of whatever device is attached to the other end of the micro USB cable.

Lightors come in a choice of AA or AAA batteries, and will ship two-packs of either battery type in July of this year to backers that spend $8. Its creator set a goal of reaching $15,000 by March 14.

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Cell Phone Accessories Chargers/Batteries

Tiny Oivo charger bookends AA batteries to juice your smartphone

42bac56bba6a3361634790efb6df93fd_largeCommunication, social media, games, navigation — the way we use iPhones is a lengthy one, making it the most important tool in someone’s pocket. Products that save the day come in all shapes and sizes, but none charge the iPhone universally, a problem to which Oivo is the solution. Two magnetically connected halves hide connectors that accept four AA batteries, allowing users to bring their phone back to life anywhere in the world to locate that next point of interest, or to make that necessary call. How long it will with just four AA batteries remains to be seen, but those still interested can receive one in December 2o14 for $39.