Tag: battery life

Microsoft’s augmented reality glasses can run for only up to 5 hours before they need to be plugged in.

A recent presentation made by Bruce Harris, the Microsoft technical evangelist, in Tel Aviv, revealed several pieces of insight about the augmented reality Hololens headset, some of which impressed the tech industry and some of which is turning out to be a bit of a disappointment.

Though many details had been revealed back in October, this recent presentation offered more insight.

Back in the original demonstration of HoloLens by Microsoft, last October, there was a great deal revealed about the function of the augmented reality device. However, some key factors were absent in that presentation, including battery life, pricing and other additional functionalities. Now, the recent Tel Aviv presentation from Bruce Harris has shown a great deal more of the finer points surrounding this gadget.

Harris explained that, depending on its usage, HoloLens will last only 2.5 to 5.5 hours before needing to recharge.

This suggests that if anyone were to invest in one of these devices, they may also want to have a good portable charger with them, as well. After all, using the headset for routine activities will give the individual only just over five hours. However, when pushing the device a little bit harder, that battery life can shrink down to 2.5 hours. For that to become a practical device it will need to be used alongside an external battery pack.

Harris also went on to say that HoloLens will be capable of running virtually any Universal app and it is currently operating on Windows 10 out of the box. Also pointed out in the presentation was that when the headset becomes consumer ready, it will be “totally wireless” and will be capable of connecting to any Bluetooth device or WiFi network. Of course, if WiFi drains this device as much as it can take down many smartphones and tablets, this will only reinforce the need for a portable charger that will be able to recharge it a few times each day.

When it comes to field of view, the HoloLens should provide an experience that can be compared to that of a 15 inch monitor. This field of view was selected in order to make it possible for Microsoft to provide optimal production capabilities in order to keep costs manageable.

A recent survey has revealed that owners of the smartwatch feel that this is not a concerning issue.

The Apple Watch has a tiny battery of only 205 mAh that had caused many in the industry to predict that the short battery life of the device would be a pain for wearers and that it might turn them off purchasing future generations.

However, a recent survey has shown that owners seem to be just fine with the daily charging.

The battery life survey was conducted by Wristly, and it found that even though Apple Watch wearers get only one day out of their devices before they need to recharge, they seem to be fine with that. In fact, most expressed that they are quite unconcerned about running out of juice before the day is through. The survey involved the participation of more than 1,200 Apple Watch wearers. What they discovered was that nearly half – 44 percent – of users never check their battery level throughout the day.

A massive 95 percent of Apple Watch users said that their device battery life is a full day.

Another 84 percent of the smartwatch’s owners said that they were satisfied with the length of time that the battery would last before it would need to be recharged. The primary drain on the battery in this gadget is one of the central Apple Watch features: fitness tracking.

Approximately 45 percent of the participants in the Wristly survey felt that the health features of the smartwatch were those that caused the largest drain on the device battery. Another 19 percent of the respondents said that Maps was the largest drain on their wearables.

What was also interesting was that 88 percent of Apple Watch users said that they charged their smartwatches “at night, no matter what percentage is showing.” This not only implies that the device seemed to run for as long as they needed it during the day, but also that the gadgets were being taken off and charged overnight while their owners were sleeping.

Still, when asked about how satisfied they were with the charging time of the Apple Watch, only 66 percent said that they were “highly satisfied”. The survey didn’t cover the number of wearers that relied on external battery chargers such as portable power banks in order to recharge their devices.