Move over Wardenclyffe Tower, smartphone maker Xiaomi is bringing wireless electricity to the masses.
Well maybe.
The Chinese tech giant Xiaomi recently announced its new Mi Air Charge technology which boasts the ability to charge compatible devices just by being near them.
The tech is said to work by using an array made up of 144 antennas in the charging unit. This works with beacon antennas and an array of receiving antennas in the device to be charged. The charging unit uses this set up to detect the device and then beamforms directly to it, while the phone converts the wave signals to electric energy using a rectifier circuit.
In practice this means you can just stand within a few metres of the charging pile and have your device charge. Even while you’re using it.
Xiaomi claims its Mi Air Charge can pump out 5-watt remote charging and also support multiple devices at once. The company has plans to have the tech work with plenty of things besides phones. Wearable devices like smart watches, or even bigger products, like speakers and lamps.
But unfortunately there’s no date for when we see this in consumer products.
But, if the tech is as promising as Xiaomi claims, this could mean the start of a cable free life. Plus South Australia is killing it when it comes to renewable solar energy. Nikola Tesla would be proud.
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Secretly several dogs stacked on top of one another in a large coat, Hope has a habit of getting far too excited about all things videogames and tech. She loves the new accomplishments and ideas humanity conjures and believes in a future where we work for the betterment of all. Until then, she does her best to bring light by sharing her excitements with you here. You can also find her screaming into the void on Twitter.
