Monday, May 20, 2013

Eesha Khare's Super-Capacitor Devices

Eesha Khare, 18, an Indian American has been awarded the Young Scientist Award. She has successfully designed, synthesized and characterized a novel nanorod electrode super-capacitor with increased energy density while retaining power density and long cycle life.

This work is an important initial step in introducing this new electrode material in super-capacitors to replace conventional batteries in flexible electronic devices.

In simple terms, she has invented something that will allow you to recharge your mobile within 20-30 seconds. Now, compare that to the hours that are required to charge the batteries currently being used in your cell-phones!

The super-capacitor is a tiny device that can hold a lot of energy in a tiny space. It charges very fast and can hold the charge for a long time.

This super-capacitor has a great future, especially in today's age where small smart devices are making great in-roads in our day-to-day life. So many times we are left stranded when the batteries in our mobile phones run out of power and require hours to recharge.

According to the young scientist, her devices can be used for 100000 charge-recharge cycles compared to about 1000 cycles for conventional batteries. She says that it also demonstrates a much higher cycle life compared to batteries.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Google Glass - The latest Gizmo from Google

The tech scene is really hotting up.

Google is all set to release its latest gizmo - Google Glass - a wearable headset with an camera, processor and a tiny display screen. The device offers bluetooth connectivity for connecting to your smartphone and wi-fi connectivity.
  • Glass has a 5MP camera and can take videos upto 720p.
  • According to Google, the high resolution display is the equivalent of a 25 inch high definition screen from eight feet away.
  • The MyGlass companion app requires Android 4.0.3 or higher and it enables GPS and SMS.
  • Glass uses Glassware. 
Glassware is the web services that can send content to and receive content from Glass. Features of this gizmo include - taking pictures and video, using search, getting directions, messaging, making phone calls, social networking through google+.
Here are some comments from folks that have already used the device...
You can see this cool video by Google - How it Feels

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

myFC PowerTekk - Charge your Mobile with Water

myFC PowerTrekk sounds like an amazing new product that could revolutionize the way we use and charge our electronic gadgets. Imagine not having to worry about low battery even in the remote places where there is no electricity.

myFC PowerTrekk is a charger that can be used for low-power device. It uses fuel cell technology and water.

Anders Lundblad a researcher at KTH Royal Institute of Technology and the founder of myFC is all set to launch what he claims to be the "world's first water activated charging device".

According to myFC...
myFC PowerTrekk is a portable fuel cell charger for use by outdoor enthusiasts who spend time away from the electricity grid. PowerTrekk provides instant power anywhere to electronic equipment such as mobile phones, digital cameras and GPS devices.

Anders says “Our chargers may be considered expensive now; but in the longer term, as they reach a mass market, they would go down in price.”

PowerTrekk is likely to be released in selected stores starting this month. I find the product exciting and would like to follow it.