

Wireless Power Is Still Pretty Useless - dabent
http://gigaom.com/2009/10/23/wireless-power-is-still-pretty-useless/

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callmeed
I noticed this the other day while cruising Target. They had a big PowerMat
endcap display in the electronics dept.

$99 for the powermat base, then $39.99 for the iPhone module.

So, we're talking about a $140 charger for a _device that starts at $99_.

The article mentions convenience, but I don't even see that. There is no
distinguishable time savings and the only other convenience I can think of it
using less outlets. Not to mention the additional bulk that is added to your
iPhone.

Sorry, but even with a price drop, I see this thing being relegated to the
Sharper Image & Sky Mall catalogs.

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dustingetz
well duh. give it a few years.

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devicenull
I'd definitely have to agree with the article, it must be cheap and
standardized before it's useful to me. Once that happens though, this can be
amazingly handy.

I don't really understand why it's not cheap, the basic concept is just two
coils of wire as far as I know. There has to be something I'm missing that
makes it expensive, though I have no idea what.

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gbookman
_I don't really understand why it's not cheap_

Maybe the device manufacturers demand excessive royalties?

I'm sure the low unit volume contributes as well. Economies of scale will
bring the price down.

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devicenull
I suppose that's a possibility, though I saw these in the store today for
$100. That's an absurd amount of royalties if that's the case.

It was also in a Target, so I'd imagine they already have the scale part down.

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beambot
I understand that _consumer_ wireless power has not yet achieved its full
potential. But those systems do not represent the entirety of wireless
power...

For example, RFID access cards (like those found in student IDs) use wireless
power to transmit their ID. Quite ubiquitous, and definitely not "useless".

There are also examples of robots using wireless power to great utility --
again, not "useless"

[http://www.hizook.com/blog/2008/10/07/wirelessly-powering-
sw...](http://www.hizook.com/blog/2008/10/07/wirelessly-powering-swarm-robots)

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lurkinggrue
I do love my touchstone charger for my Palm Pre.

Still sticking a thing on an iphone and buying a $99 matt is way too much of a
kludge.

Best if it is built into the design.

