[Discuss] alternatives to batteries

[tmetro-blu at vl.com (Tom Metro)]

Richard Pieri wrote:
> I see room-scale broadcast power as being the real game-changer.

Nah. I think if you dig deeper into this you'll find that the power
potential just isn't there. To capture the power needed in a small
portable device would exceed what the laws of physics allow for.

Though that's relative to power requirements. If you have a tablet that
uses 1/100 (maybe less - I haven't done the math) the power of current
tablets, then it might fly. As you noted, this approach works for RFID
tags, but their power need relative to their antenna size makes this viable.


> I see batteries as being a dead end.  They're entropic, which is a fancy
> way of saying that they wear out with use.  It's inescapable.

Agreed. But the answer is super capacitors. They're doable within the
laws of physics. It's just a matter of material science.

 -Tom

-- 
Tom Metro
Venture Logic, Newton, MA, USA
"Enterprise solutions through open source."
Professional Profile: http://tmetro.venturelogic.com/