Apple Reportedly Testing Inductive, Solar and Motion Charging For Its Smartwatch 219
An anonymous reader writes in with the latest from the rumor mill about a possible Apple smartwatch. "We've heard that when Apple reveals its first smartwatch product, there's going to be a heavy focus on health and fitness, but There might also be a way to charge the wearable without plugging it in, according to a report from the New York Times. Inductive charging came in a wave of smartphones last year, including Google's Nexus 4 and Nokia's Lumia 920 range, although we don't often see it in anything smaller than a phone (or camera) form-factor. Apple, however, is looking into cramming the same technology into its iWatch, or whatever it eventually calls its debut wearable."
Apple tests everything (Score:5, Informative)
These are basically all the possible ways to recharge a wristwatch that currently exist, except for physical mechanical contacts. This shouldn't be surprising because if there's one thing history has taught us, it's that Apple tries out practically every permutation of hardware in the R&D process. There were rumours that the "Apple tablet" would come in three screen sizes; it was later revealed that Apple had been testing three sizes on its campus to decide which one it preferred. There were rumours that they'd launch a version with no mechanical buttons; it was disclosed that Apple had tested that permutation too.
Whenever you read an Apple product rumour, before you even question the legitimacy of the source, ask yourself: is there any reason to suppose this is any more than a speculative prototype on their part?
Re:Apple tests everything (Score:5, Informative)
Except you can write off solar instantly. There is not enough square inches to charge your smartwatch on your wrist. Some regular digitals get away with it because displaying the time on an LCD takes almost no power. Talking BT to your phone and all the smart stuff takes a buttload more power, way over what a small solar cell can deliver. (And honestly, the solar watches do NOT recharge, they simply offset power use their batteries eventually die and need replacement)
Re:Haute horologie. (Score:4, Informative)
Except they are mechanical winding. The Sekio Kinetic which turns that into electrical charging seems to keep my watch working just fine, and I sit at a computer all day as my job.
Of course the issue is that mechanical electrical generation aka Sekio Kinetic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A... [wikipedia.org] and solar electrical generation aka the Citizen EcoDrive http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E... [wikipedia.org] provide tiny amounts of power to keep a watch going, and could not provide anywhere near sufficient power for a smart watch.
Re:Apple tests everything (Score:4, Informative)
You measure power in gallons?
(a "butt" as a unit of measure is approximately 126 gallons)