The promise of fuel cells giving us all day/week/month power has been around for several years now. I have been looking forward to dumping my rechargeable batteries for quite a while, instead replacing them with a fuel cell I can refill and forget about for 30+ hours.
Until now such fuel cells have only been a research project at best, with planned launches failing to go ahead, or quantities being so limited and expensive you never get to buy one and never hear about them again.
That may be about to change, though. Japanese company Aquafairy has developed a new fuel cell aimed specifically at cell phones. It’s called the AF-M3000, and while it doesn’t fit inside a handset, it does promise to recharge one if you add a bit of water.
This promotional video Aquafairy released shows their fuel cell tech powering a range of devices including charging a mobile phone using water as the fuel.
The fuel cell uses calcium hydrate which generates hydrogen gas when water is added. That in turn reacts with oxygen and produces the energy required to recharge the phone battery. Aquafairy say the AF-M3000 generates 3 watts and can recharge an iPhone in 90 minutes.
As with all new tech, the fuel cell will not be cheap. When it gets released in April you can expect to pay around $320 for it.
Read more at CrunchGear and Aquafairy (translated)
Matthew’s Opinion
I don’t think many people will be investing in this fuel cell. The price is far too high and the functionality on offer is only really of benefit if you are going to be out of reach of a power outlet for a long time. Even if you are, spending $320 to solve that problem is too steep for most people.
I do see the launch of the AF-M3000 as promising, though. A portable fuel cell that only requires water to produce a charge is useful. If the device can be reduced in size to fit in a pocket, and the life of the cell proven to be good e.g. thousands of uses, then it could be a perfect on-the-go charger in the future.
Aquafairy isn’t the first to come up with this calcium hydrate fuel cell solution. PowerTrekk unveiled something similar earlier this month. If anything it shows that at least the technology has gotten to a stage where a usable product can be created and sold even if it isn’t what we are all craving: power generating units inside our phones and laptops.
