Tag: solar cell phone charger

Hand-cranked portable charger case wowed at CES 2016

The demo given by AMPware was a genuine attention-grabber at the Consumer Electronics Show

The first hand-cranked portable charger case for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S received considerable positive attention at the end of last week during CES 2016 in Las Vegas where it had to battle for notice from among over 20,000 products being demoed by over 3,600 exhibitors.

The fact that a hand-cranked power bank could shine at such an event clearly shows the importance of backup chargers.

The AMPware case is not yet on the market, but people who are interested in a hand-cranked portable charger can pre-order this mobile device so they can be among the first to receive it upon its release in March 2016. It has a limited capacity at only 1,000 mAh but the main advantage of this case over other tiny capacity power banks is that this battery pack can be cranked back up to full power using a fold-out handle.

The AMPware demo of the portable charger at CES 2016 claimed that it must be cranked for 5 minutes.

AMPware portable charger hand powered This hand powered battery pack needs to be cranked for five minutes and this will offer about an hour of normal use on an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6S. This seems to place the device in a position somewhere between solar chargers and the traditional form that can be plugged into the wall. While it does offer far faster juice than a solar cell phone charger – needing only 5 minutes per 1,000 mAh – it doesn’t even approach some of the better quality iPhone battery pack options currently available.

AMPware hand cranked battery packMoreover, using this device isn’t simply a matter of plugging in the USB cord as it needs to be cranked up, first, to make sure it actually has power to provide. It looks as though this would be better for someone who is worried about running out of charge during a power failure or a long trip or someone who finds that their cell phone battery is nearly good enough for their needs, but sometimes fall short by less than an hour of usage.

As the crank is built right into the case, it does make this a convenient option because no additional storage is necessary but external portable charger devices still compete with that convenience in their work-free power availability. Still, for consumers looking for backup power that is generated for free, always available and eco-friendly, this could be a very appealing option.

Smartphone battery charger comes in the phone of solar benches

A new tech startup called Changing Environments has invented public seating that uses the sun to charge mobiles.

Changing Environments, a startup based in Massachusetts, has now announced its invention of a public bench that acts as a solar powered smartphone battery charger that could be used by Boston residents and visitors to recharge their mobile devices.

The company is also working on collating data on the setting surrounding that urban area.

The smartphone battery charger bench is called the “Soofa”. It has a built in solar panel that can build up the energy needed for members of the public to be able to charge up their mobile devices such as cell phones and tablets using USB ports. Previous efforts to provide the public with USB ports have come to a halt after there were some serious mobile security concerns voiced regarding the risk of hackers that could use them to spread viruses.

The CEO of the company explained that these solar smartphone battery charger benches are equipped with powerful mobile security.

Smartphone battery charger - solar powerChief exec of Changing Environments, Sandra Richter, assures users that the Soofa mobile device charger is equipped with stringent security measures in order to help to prevent attempts to use the USB ports for this type of malicious activities.

The recharging ports are housed within concrete boxes. These boxes are fitted with security screws that, according to Richter, can be opened only by staff from the company. Should brute force be used to try to force the boxes open, it would automatically disable the electronics within the box.

Beyond providing the public with a free mobile device recharging station, the Soofa also has a computer built into it that gathers data with regards to the urban environment in which it has been placed. This information is wirelessly sent over the internet. Among the types of data that are gathered by the benches is the amount of sunshine that is received by the bench. This collected information will soon be expanded to include other environmental details, such as noise levels, air quality, and the flow of pedestrians around the smartphone battery charger benches.