'Wire-free' electricity juices mobile devices

A company that claims to have solved the "last wire" dilemma announced Monday that it is working with Acer and other manufacturing partners to deliver early next year a pad with a conductive surface that can power computing devices resting on top of it as if they were plugged into an electrical outlet.

The "last wire" dilemma refers to the power adapters that juice computing devices, which remain one wire that can't been replaced by existing wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and IEEE 802.11. MobileWise, based in Los Altos, Calif., Monday previewed its "wire-free" electricity technology that could cut loose mobile device owners from their power cords.

An early design of the technology looks something like a thick rubber place mat. Metal "connectivity points" span the surface of the pad and are responsible for delivering power to laptop computers, cell phones or other devices that make contact with the surface. A single pad can power any number of devices that fit on top.

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A company that claims to have solved the "last wire" dilemma announced Monday that it is working with Acer and other manufacturing partners to deliver early next year a pad with a conductive surface that can power computing devices resting on top of it as if they were plugged into an electrical outlet.

The "last wire" dilemma refers to the power adapters that juice computing devices, which remain one wire that can't been replaced by existing wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and IEEE 802.11. MobileWise, based in Los Altos, Calif., Monday previewed its "wire-free" electricity technology that could cut loose mobile device owners from their power cords.

An early design of the technology looks something like a thick rubber place mat. Metal "connectivity points" span the surface of the pad and are responsible for delivering power to laptop computers, cell phones or other devices that make contact with the surface. A single pad can power any number of devices that fit on top.

Its potential uses are diverse, said Andy Goren, the company's CEO, who demonstrated the technology at a press conference in San Francisco Monday. One obvious benefit is that a pad, which has a single power cord that plugs into the wall, could replace the multitude of power supplies required for individual devices that fit on its surface.

"All these different wires are getting replaced all the time by wireless technologies. The last problem that has remained is with the power supply," he said.

Grown out of a concept devised by company founders, which include former executives from Palm and Motorola, the technology is near-ready for release. Computer and handheld device maker Acer has committed to releasing a number of "next-generation" mobile computing devices in the first half of 2003 that will ship with a wire-free power supply based on MobileWise's technology, said Acer CTO Arif Maskatia, who attended Monday's unveiling.

The company would not disclose which devices would first ship with electricity pads. However, Monday's demonstration of the technology featured Acer's soon-to-be-released TravelMate Tablet PC.

Samsung has also announced a partnership agreement with MobileWise to use the technology in future Samsung products, as have Japanese manufacturers RF Technology and Hanrim Electronics, which will produce the pads for device makers.

The base is safe to human contact and emits no harmful radiation, the company says. It will only distribute power to devices placed on top of it that include a special microchip developed by MobileWise that sends information to the pad, such as how many watts are required to power the device. That means other objects, such as a wristwatch or a full coffee cup, would be unaffected when placed on top of the mat.

MobileWise is primarily a microchip company and has developed a chip that it sells for US$1.25 a piece, which can be integrated into the chipset of any device so it can draw power from a pad. The company has also developed the reference designs for pads of various sizes, which will be customized and built by licensees of the technology. They are expected to be priced less than $200 with availability in early 2003.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.