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I don't think charging "pads" should be considered wireless. Yes, technically they don't require a wire but when we speak about going "wireless" the idea is to

by dayaz36 12y ago

I don't think charging "pads" should be considered wireless. Yes, technically they don't require a wire but when we speak about going "wireless" the idea is to be liberated from the physical constraints of the wire and be able to move around freely without restraints. These charging pads are actually LESS liberating because it requires your device to be stuck to the pad otherwise it wont charge whereas with a wire you can at least use it several feet away. I'm not sure what value this adds over charging with wire in terms of functionality. What Ubeam is working on is more exciting and revolutionary. That's REAL wireless charging!

B-Con 12y ago
> I'm not sure what value this adds over charging with wire in terms of functionality. Not sure if it's adding functionality but rather convenience. I think the goal of "charging furniture" is to pick up a collection of small charges over the day that remove the need for dedicated "inconvenient" charging times. So instead of tracking battery life and anticipating your future use and eventually coming to a point where you say "OK, now is is a good combination of low battery and convenient timing to plug my phone in and charge it" you just put it down when you sit down and magically you have a phone that lasts much longer before it needs a period of dedicated charging time. When I got a wireless charging pad that was how I was hoping it would work. Except it didn't because it's a small pad and the phone has to be placed precisely on it and it makes an obnoxiously loud beep when charging begins. Since using it requires a mental decision and never really flows seamlessly, I really only find myself using it when I would use a charging cord anyway. But maybe the implementation in furniture may change that. Just make the charging area large enough that I can drop it on the spot correctly on the first try reliably. (It takes me two tries on average with my current pad.)
radley 12y ago
Because you can pick it up and go more than 3ft away and put it back down when you're done without futzing with "fit the wire in the hole" again.

by dayaz36 12y ago

B-Con 12y ago

> I'm not sure what value this adds over charging with wire in terms of functionality. Not sure if it's adding functionality but rather convenience. I think the goal of "charging furniture" is to pick up a collection of small charges over the day that remove the need for dedicated "inconvenient" charging times. So instead of tracking battery life and anticipating your future use and eventually coming to a point where you say "OK, now is is a good combination of low battery and convenient timing to plug my phone in and charge it" you just put it down when you sit down and magically you have a phone that lasts much longer before it needs a period of dedicated charging time. When I got a wireless charging pad that was how I was hoping it would work. Except it didn't because it's a small pad and the phone has to be placed precisely on it and it makes an obnoxiously loud beep when charging begins. Since using it requires a mental decision and never really flows seamlessly, I really only find myself using it when I would use a charging cord anyway. But maybe the implementation in furniture may change that. Just make the charging area large enough that I can drop it on the spot correctly on the first try reliably. (It takes me two tries on average with my current pad.)

radley 12y ago

Because you can pick it up and go more than 3ft away and put it back down when you're done without futzing with "fit the wire in the hole" again.