Next stage in mobile device battery tech: rapid charging

What is the best in class battery? All agree that it isn’t progressing fast enough. While devices can run longer now on a battery charge than in the past, but that’s not due to improvements in battery technology. This may be about to change as two new products are using faster battery charging to extend mobile usage of devices.

The BlackBerry PlayBook is getting a less than outstanding reception since hitting the market recently, ranging from lukewarm to downright hostile reactions. Few folks sharing these reactions point out one area that is unique to the PlayBook, and that is the special charging port that works with two rapid charging accessories. While the conventional power brick that ships with the PlayBook plugs into the microUSB port on the bottom of the device, these rapid chargers plug into the unusual port to the right of the microUSB port.

These chargers work “up to 2 times faster” than the conventional power brick included with the PlayBook for recharging the battery, According to RIM. This is designed to allow the PlayBook, with already decent battery life, to take advantage of short periods of opportunity for charging. That would allow travelers waiting for flights to double the amount of charging possible by using these special chargers working with the special port on the PlayBook.

Lenovo, the folks behind the ThinkPad notebook line, have been extending the useful battery life of its laptops through innovative hardware design. A new notebook, unconfirmed by Lenovo, has recently leaked to the web that promises rapid battery charging over two times faster than normal. The thin ThinkPad X1 is obviously taking on the MacBook Air given its thin and light form, and is reported to have special battery technology designed to charge “up to 2.5 times faster than previous ThinkPad batteries, charging 80% in 30 minutes”.