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The latest kit for faster, longer and cheaper mobile working Notebook sales are booming in the UK, as vendors and retailers squeeze their profit margins to generate demand. At the same time, sales of PDAs are down by over 10 percent in 2003 compared to 2002, as PDA manufacturers struggle to target new markets. All this means one thing for buyers: lower prices -- if not now, as in the case of notebooks, then soon, as PDA manufacturers race to get rid of inventory in the run up to Christmas, when they traditionally bring out new models. If you're looking for the perfect kit for the mobile wireless office, there's never been a better time. ZDNet UK recently ran a poll to find out what you value most in a notebook, and the results are reproduced below. High-speed wireless networking came low on your list of priorities, presumably because for most people working wirelessly, the 11Mbps provided by plain old 802.11a is more than sufficient.
Battery Life Everyone's seen the cartoon about the gadget freak with the smallest notebook PC -- dragging a suitcase-sized battery along on castors behind. We still have not escaped that caricature, but there are a number of technologies on the horizon that look promising. And we do need them. The electronics industry is rushing to find ways to replace the nickel cadmium and lithium ion batteries that today power most portable electronic devices. The drawback to existing power technologies is that they will inevitably hit a barrier, as faster processors, higher-resolution displays, more wireless connections and other advances increase the overall demand for power. Methanol fuel cells Earlier this year Toshiba exhibited a methanol fuel cell that it believes could eventually replace rechargeable batteries. The Japanese electronics company, which ranks among the top notebook makers, showed off direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) technology for portable computers that can provide about five hours of power with a single cartridge of fuel. The new fuel cell, about 275 mm by 75 mm by 40 mm, provides an instant power supply for a significant amount of time using replaceable methanol cartridges, the company said. But don't hold your breath; analysts say the cell is unlikely to have much of an impact on the notebook sector before the end of 2004, and even then shipments are likely to be in small units. Munich-based Smart Fuel Cell GmbH, meanwhile, has shown early production examples of a methanol-fuelled device capable of producing 40 watts of power and intended to provide electrical energy for laptop, printer and mobile phone at the same time. The company claims that a single 125 mL cartridge of methanol -- a common alcohol costing around ten pence a litre in bulk -- will power a laptop for a full working day. Recharging is a matter of putting in a new cartridge, and takes seconds. Smart Fuel Cell says that it is planning to produce around a thousand of its fuel cells this year, most of which will go into test and experimental uses including traffic systems, remote sensors, camping and outdoor equipment. The company is aiming for the price and size of the laptop version to be comparable with lithium-ion cells, the current leader for portable power, but says that the fuel cells will have three times the power density in watts per kilogram. Fast charging One company looking at the problem of battery power from a different perspective is Rayovac, which is promising rechargeable < href="http://news.zdnet.co.uk/hardware/0,39020351,2106915,00.htm">batteries that charge in minutes and last up to four times longer than current cells. Rayovac's technology is based on existing nickel metal hydride (NiMH) chemistry -- the most widespread in general use -- but adds in-battery monitoring and a new basic design. Batteries based on the technology will be included in products from next year, with retail rechargeables in standard sizes available in shops by the end of 2003. The batteries will recharge in quarter of an hour, says the company, and can be charged to 90 percent of their capacity in ten minutes. Ordinary rechargeables would dramatically overheat and be damaged by such treatment: an in-battery pressure sensor in the new design monitors the precise state of the chemical reaction that takes place during charging. The system, called in-cell charge control (I-C3), is currently going through patenting and has not been fully disclosed.
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