Apple is working with a British energy firm on bringing fuel cell technology to future Apple devices, according to latest reports.
Fuel cell company Intelligent Energy is working with Apple, according to unnamed sources cited by the Daily Mail.
Intelligent Energy teased such a collaboration earlier this month when it floated on the stock market, at which time it announced a fistful of patents in concert with a major technology player.
Why should you care about fuel cell technology? A fuel cell could in theory run for far longer than a conventional battery, as used in the current iPad Air and iPad mini models. We’re talking days of constant use potentially.
While we know not to take anything the Daily Mail writes as gospel, it claims to have “senior US sources” confirming the collaboration.
The main difference between conventional batteries and fuel cells is that while the battery stores a finite chemical reserve, a fuel cell has a consistent chemical reserve, and only needs to be supplied with catalysts to provide energy. In a hydrogen fuel cell, these catalysts are oxygen and hydrogen.
Apple patents detailing the use of hydrogen fuel cells in its devices go all the way back to 2011, including one entry that specifically detailed a fuel cell stack being used to power a mobile device.
The dream this conjured, and still does, is phone or tablet you won’t have to charge for weeks, bringing back the sort of stamina we only had before the days of smartphones.
Shortly after its IPO on the stock exchange earlier this month, Intelligent Energy announced it had raised $94.1 million in funds.
The company is valued at $811 million, making it the most ‘valuable’ fuel cell company in the world.
Next, read our iPad Air review
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
