British power technology company
Intelligent Energy has developed an iPhone 6 prototype with a built-in fuel cell that supports hydrogen cartridges delivering up to a week's worth of battery life, according to
The Telegraph. It also demonstrated a hydrogen-powered MacBook Air.
The patented fuel cell system, reportedly poised for its first major commercial
deployment in cell towers across India over the next few weeks, creates electricity based on the chemical reaction of combining hydrogen and oxygen, which produces only small amounts of water vapor and heat as waste.
Intelligent Energy also introduced a hydrogen-powered
iPhone charger called Upp based on the same technology last year, but its latest breakthrough has seen it fit the fuel cell portion of the technology alongside an iPhone 6 battery pack without altering the size or shape of the smartphone.
Henri Winand, CEO of Intelligent Energy:The only cosmetic difference on the iPhone 6 prototype is the addition of rear vents allowing a small amount of water vapor to escape.
The Telegraph reports the device it saw at the company's Loughborough, United Kingdom headquarters also had a modified headphone socket for refuelling hydrogen gas, although likely only because it was a prototype.
Intelligent Energy plans to sell a disposable cartridge that will attach to the bottom of a smartphone and provide enough hydrogen-releasing powder "for a week of normal use," and the company's corporate finance chief Mark Lawson-Statham vaguely mentions having a "partner" on board -- speculated to be Apple, although both companies declined to comment as expected.The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are powered by 1,810 mAh and 2,915 mAh lithium-ion batteries respectively.
Article Link:
Intelligent Energy's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology Can Now Fit Inside an iPhone