USB Battery – Rechargeable USB Batteries!

August 20th, 2007 | Category: USB

Available from: I Want One of Those – USB Cell - Price: £12 for 2 AA USB batteries

To kick off the blog, we start with an extremely innovative new invention, USB rechargeable batteries!

Although charging batteries using your USB port is not a new idea, before you`ve always needed an external charger which plugs into your USB port and is another bit of kit to carry around with you.

These USB batteries are the same size as normal AA batteries, but the top lifts off to reveal a USB connector, so the batteries can plug straight into the USB port making them easy to recharge. Great for taking away on holiday, they can be recharged straight from your laptop, without the need to carry round an external charger!

With a desktop PC they are extremely useful for charging up batteries for wireless keyboards and mice (which tend to eat batteries!).

The USB Cells also help the environment, as they can be recharged over and over again, cutting down on damaging waste products from dead batteries, which are often incinerated or buried in landfills. The USB Batteries are made from nickel metal hydride (NiMH), which are more enviromentally friendly than the traditional NiCad batteries, which are to be banned in the EU shortly because they contain toxic nickel cadium. They can also deliver an extra 10 – 25% capacity over traditional NiCads! Because they are unplugged when charged, unlike traditional battery chargers, they can also save energy reducing your carbon footprint (or at least saving energy you can use for other gadgets!).

The USB batteries can be recharged over 500 times, and a full charge takes just 5 hours with an LED indicator telling you when the batteries are fully charged and ready for use. A quick 20 minute charge should be enough to power a wireless mouse for a day.

Currently the British spend over £5 million pounds per week on batteries for their favourite gadgets, so these rechargeable batteries can save you some serious cash! Although the batteries require no external charger, they can be used in a tradional battery charger if required, although the charging time increases to 7 hours for a full charge.