December 18, 2005
Look Mom ... No Batteries!
While Googling for information about charging an iPod, the barely-intelligent Google Ads service informed me of an interesting service by Target to recharge my iPod online. Of course when you click on the link, all they want to sell you is various dongles, wires, and assorted plug-in recharging accessories. However this ad gave me pause because it really is what I want -- a way where I never have to recharge the various electronic devices that I own. What if I were just able to go to Target and have a service contract where my iPod would always be recharged automatically?
Every rechargeable device I own is something like a new child to feed. Cordless devices are truly magical, yet they exact a toll on their owners. I know that if I do not regular feed the device energy, its battery will begin to discharge and its efficacy will eventually be affected. Sometimes during the charging process, the device betrays you and runs amock. A good example is what happens when I recharge my Powerbook laptop while not in use and its clamshell is closed -- sometimes it begins to overheat out of control. Note that I'm not even using laptop, but at sporadic times I hear its fan wildly spinning and when I try to turn the computer on there is a refusal to engage. Thus not only must you feed your electronic devices, but now you must watch to be sure that they do not overeat and hurt themselves.
In my book, the smartest guy here at the Media Lab is Prof. Joseph Paradiso. If you think of the legendary MacGyver character who could fix any situation with duct tape and a paperclip, Joe is best thought of as most likely MacGyver's sensei. A few years back, Joe and his team invented a self-powered, wireless switch that harvests the energy generated during the push of a button to electrically send an RF signal. Said another way, the FOB that activates your car alarm system will not need a battery and instead use just the power from your pushing of the button.
Joe's work shows that true simplicity in electronic devices is not simply about being wireless, but also self-powered. An alternative possibility is for devices to recharge anywhere they might rest in the environment as has been demonstrated in some covert labs I've seen with recharging tabletops. These systems operate upon the same principle that rechargeable toothbrushes use called inductive charging. However I'm not certain that I want to have substantial power emanating from every single wall and surface in my home ... hmmmm ... but sitting in front of a computer can't be all that great for you either so ....
The thirteenth law of simplicity is destined to be the most unlucky and unsolvable for the near future (at the same time I figure Joe will figure it out in the next few years):
of simplicity unless they are not only untethered,
but have (at least) the appearance of being unpowered.
Thus being perceived as powerless, shall become the epitomy of power. Is that not the same in our own social spheres as well? Off to recharge my growing collection of iPods ...
Posted by maeda at December 18, 2005 11:39 AMThoughts On Simplicity By John Maeda