Batteries International
January 1998
Batteries International
January 1998
"New charger brings joy"
With all the whinges and
moans the Editor heard recently at the portable power meeting, it's quite obvious that
most mobile phone and computer lap top vendors don't understand batteries or charger
technologies. Batteries International received a press release from a
company in Atlanta called Advanced Charger Technology, which has recently launched the ACTivator
VI, which, I'm told, incorporates ACT's patented "Dynamic
Electrochemical Waveform" (DEW) technology. And it was recently featured on
CNN's Science and Technology Week, (must be good then?) because this is the same
technology which can charge a cell phone battery in five minutes.
What we're not clearly told, but I can only presume, is that
this charger incorporates a patentable algorithm for fast charging and that this system is
able to determine whether it's charging a NiCd or NiMH battery and may be even lithium
too?
the ACTivator people claim their
device provides a maximum charge every time, and more than triples the life of any
battery. "In numerous tests, batteries rated for 500 cycles have exceeded
2000!"
We don't doubt it but what battery chemistry was rated for just
500 cycles? Battery manufacturers appear to be playing games of poker, they understate
their hands and then surprise you, and sometimes even themselves, in what they can
achieve.
In addition to charging faster than existing "rapid
chargers" the ACTivator conditions as it charges.
And, batteries can be left in the charger indefinitely without losing charge or incurring
damage. ACT holds five patents for its battery charging
technologies, with numerous more pending.
There's no question that products like this will probably result
in mobile phone batteries lasting longer. But I'd be happier if everyone in the
supply chain told the customer what the real situation was and why they threw batteries
away in the first place. But they probably don't want to listen.
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