charger

All batteries need love and the BC-900 is a great way to show that you care. I'm constantly charging for my five digital door locks, flashlights, GPS and cordless mice. This charger has been one of my favorite devices not only for keeping my gadgets going, but for prolonging the life of my rechargeable AAs as well. It sports a display and charge-control modes for each battery. Find out more about what this device can teach you about your batteries after the jump.

Typical Battery Charger :  Mikey Sklar

Ever lose your cellphone charger? When your doomed search for friends or family with a phone of similar brand/vintage eventually fails, it's off to the third-party charger vendor where confusion and high prices await.

We can all agree, then, that proprietary charger plugs are among the larger pains in the respective behinds of cellphone users everywhere. But not so anymore in Europe: the EU is leading the way to create a standard micro-USB charger for all cellphones sold.

Forgot your charger? No problem. Scientists have developed a microfiber fabric that can generate enough electricity to juice up a cell phone or a mini-music player. If turned into clothing, the fabric would get its power from the action of your daily movement. The material uses zinc-oxide nanowires that are arranged in pairs—one wire in each grouping is coated with gold, and serves as the electrode. When the fabric moves, the wires move and bend, and the fabric translates this mechanical energy into electricity.

Green Plug wants to rewire your gizmos and even your home, and ditch most of your wall wart chargers in the process. Instead of each gadget having its own charger built to deliver just the right amount of power, it would have a chip that tells a universal charger how much power it needs.

If you travel frequently, you’re probably lugging around a clunky array of backup batteries for all your wireless gizmos. Soon you’ll be able to lighten your load with Medis Technologies´s new nine-ounce disposable Power Pack. When your iPod dies mid-flight, you can plug it in for a full on-the-spot recharge. The 1.3-watt device will do this five times. It will also deliver five full charges for your digital camera or 20 hours of talk time for your cellphone before it’s spent.