Tag: charging

Categories
Chargers/Batteries Health and Wellness

Tylt Vu Pulse adds heart rate, wireless charging to Pebble Time

Heart rate tracking is one of the most helpful features of some fitness activity trackers and smartwatches including the Apple Watch. But it’s not a feature (yet anyway) on the Pebble Time smartwatch. The need to plug in the watch to charge it, meanwhile, can be a major hassle.

Tylt Vu Pulse is an add-on, protective case for the Pebble Time and Pebble Time Steel that adds heart rate monitoring, as well as wireless charging, to those smartwatches. The case connects to the accessory port of the watches and syncs with Android and iOS mobile devices using Google Fit and Apple Health.

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Apparel Connected Objects

The The PowearIN jacket is the one that keeps your gadgets going

What used to be a day at the office is anything but. Today the demands of a connected world dictate the office be anywhere at any time and as such, people need easy ways of carrying their devices and powering them, too.

Enter the awkwardly titled PowearIN, a technical jacket that’s a device in and of itself. By considering all a connected user on the move needs, the company of the same name has created a jacket that stuffs more than forty separate features into its design. Its INbutton, sporting five buttons and rotary-styled operation, is central to what it can do and allows users to control four separate modes: a music mode, a lighting mode, a power mode, and a camera mode.

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Features

Before The Backers: three charging solutions for sun, sea and wear

Before the Backers highlights up-and-coming products that haven’t yet made their crowdfunding debut.

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Poseidon Portable Charger

The search for the perfect charging solution for the many smart devices that shamelessly die each and every day is one that never ends. Every product promises peace of mind, but turn out to do anything but.

The Poseidon charger is an attempt at a charging solution that provides a week’s worth of power in an extremely compact, waterproof, drop resistant form. It may be diminutive, but its ruggedness makes it a hardy companion for any USB-chargeable device whether on the job in the city or outdoors taking in the fresh air, especially considering the Poseidon charger can hold its own charge for up to a year. Dual USB ports allows multiple devices to connect as well, recharging most of them at least two times.

The Poseidon charger is available to pre-order now for $89.00.

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Buckle Charger

The most common portable charging solutions now available also feature clunky form factors and snaking wires that end up making the charging a device on the go more of a hassle than it needs to be. Thankfully, the Buckle Charger takes a rarely considered part of most people’s attire — the belt buckle — and transforms it into the charger savior we all need.

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Podcasts

Backerjack Podcast #13: More USBs, Sliding Keyboard Discs, and Robots for Kids

In Episode 13 of the Backerjack Podcast, Steve and Ross check out some of the latest products seeking funds and preorders.

  • SnapPower, a replacement outlet cover that adds a USB port in seconds
  • Octodon, a wild smartphone input device that uses magnetic disks mounted to an unfolding smartphone extension
  • Codie, a little robot loaded with treads and loaded with sensors that teaches kids to code

Many thanks to SnapPower for sponsoring this episode! Please support its campaign.

Download  the episode or listen below, subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and follow Backerjack on Twitter and Facebook.

Categories
Chargers/Batteries Connected Objects Luggage and Bags

AMPL charging backpack provides ample energy for your contraptions

What should be portable devices are anything but when people have to lug around external batteries, charging cases, and all types of wires just to keep them filled with energy throughout the day. Modern demands require the presence of constant sources of energy, but always fighting for an outlet isn’t the most practical solution.

Instead, the AMPL Smart Backpack lets users take the power with them. The shock absorber-lined, water-resistant backpack is outfitted with three compartments for swappable, high capacity batteries that are powerful enough to charge everything from smartphones, to tablets, to 17″ laptops. The batteries feature Onovo fast charging technology to charge the batteries to 80% in an hour to avoid staying stuck to walls. Located throughout the bag is a total of six USB ports that funnel the energy, monitored and controlled by either a small, touch-capable OLED screen, or a Bluetooth-enabled companion app that lets users prioritize what gets charged first, along with keeping an eye on the internal temperature—all without opening the bag.

This is the slickest conception of a smart charging backpack so far when compared to half-baked products like the Smart Charge Power Bag. The sheer power that can be carried around, coupled with the level of control the companion app gives users, makes this a clear winner for lots of people since these devices are so common. The $125,000 campaign is looking to get the $249 backpack out to backers by September of this year.

Categories
Chargers/Batteries Organization

TekTuk keeps mobiles safe from sleepy feet

Finding a convenient place to charge mobile devices that keeps them off the floor and free from the risk of getting stepped on can be a challenge, especially when traveling. TekTuk offers a way to keep mobiles bedside while still getting charged and in a safe place. The top portion of the leather carrying case fits between the mattress and box spring to keep mobile devices off of the floor. It will hold most tablets (up to 11” wide and 1” thick) and mobile phones (up to 3 ¼” wide, 1” thick) in their cases.

If backers can avoid knocking into the TekTuk during the night, this may be a good solution for mobile protection. The elastic cord management loops seem like a nice touch for keeping wires tangle-free and easily accessible as well. Backers might also want to check out the Z-charge, and ReelJuice  campaigns. This campaign seeks to raise $3,000 by December 8, 2014. Early bird backers get one product for $35, with an expected delivery of December 2014.

Categories
Automotive Chargers/Batteries

Pocket Jump charges your smartphone, jump starts your car

Being suddenly stranded on the side of the road because of a dead car battery and a smartphone on its last legs can be a pretty terrible situation. With the unimpressive capacity of our smartphones, this is probably a situation that happens all too often and is dangerous because there just might not be anyone around to help. Viatek Consumer Products Group, Inc. is looking to kill two birds with one stone with their Pocket Jump, a product looking to restore motorists’ peace of mind while on the road.

Pocket Jump addresses our devices’ constant necessity for power as a portable 3000mAh or 4800mAh battery pack with the ability to recharge using a micro-USB connection or a vehicle’s own car battery through the cigarette lighter. In the unfortunate scenario that a car battery dies out, the Pocket Jump is equipped with the technology to jump start a car with that same cigarette lighter so a motorist can avoid the hassle of having to flag down another car, use dangerous jumper cables, and possibly face inclement weather while doing so.

Cars, vans, trucks with diesel or hybrid engines can all use the Pocket Jump, making the tiny device an extremely versatile tool to have handy especially because it will more or less always have some sort of charge within. The 3000mAh version goes for $40, while the Pocket Jump Plus goes for $80. The campaign is looking for $10,000 to get the product in backer’s vehicles by December 2014.

Categories
Smartwatches/Bands

StopMee removes wires from the smartwatch market

stopmeeWe’ve seen many smart watches lately, but most people don’t appreciate the inconvenience of having another device to look after. If such a smartwatch charged wirelessly, that might be another story. StopMee is a wrist wearable that offers helpful reminders relating to hygiene, incoming phone calls, and even health, all powered by Wi-Fi signals in the area. The campaign video is flashy, colorful, and promises a great deal about the device, regrettably without showing the device working in the real world. Backers beware, this little band may be too good to be true, but those who can keep the faith may want to pick this up. StopMee will launch for $250 to ship in August 2015.

Categories
Chargers/Batteries

Juice charges your iPad when its back’s against the wall

juiceBetween their functionality and they’re minimalist modern design, iPads look at home anywhere shy of a log cabin. Juice, a new breed of charging dock for iPads takes that idea and runs with it. With hidden wiring, the Juice is a sleek, efficient on-wall dock that holds and stores an iPad 2-4 (with Air supported via stretch goal). The iPad is fully functional while charging and can be set up as a smart home control center or just a temporary photo frame. Of course, it’s up to you to figure out a way to get the juice to juice through the wall. With support for both Lightning and 30-pin connectors, Juice will be available in August to those who pledge at least £39.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Chargers/Batteries

Varius Dock mixes two mobile things on its block

Varius dockKickstarter has been something of a haven for iPhone docks ever since the Elevation Dock raised almost $1.5 million in a groundbreaking campaign.  While that product featured one look and was engineered for one phone, the Varius Dock subscribes to the “flat Earth” theory both with its low-profile base and support for bearkt every popular smartphone and tablet on the planet. Product design Michael Schoening splits his campaign videos between a featured product showcase and a more personal appeal later on the campaign page. But that’s nothing compared to the no less than 12 reward tiers. Selecting one of them will get you the Varius Dock for $69, a $20 discount. But the stronger appeal is probably for people who want to charge multiple devices, which is $10 more. They are slated to start juicing up your mobile screens in April 2014.