Sunday, June 2, 2002
Unique Power Options
Posted by Brad Adrian in "HARDWARE" @ 08:33 PM
http://www.seidioonline.com/store/viewitem.asp?idproduct=233&idcategory=127
Seidio, a subsidiary of Promax Wireless Products, has introduced a novel, but useful, system for remote charging of Pocket PC devices. Their Emergency Power Kit includes everything you need to get your depleted device up and running again, no matter where you are.
By simply attaching a 9-volt battery to the kit's Emergency Power Charger, your device can be completely and quickly recharged. You can even purchase different adapters for various devices, making the charger very versatile. <!>
In addition, the full kit comes with a cigarette lighter adapter for powering the charger from a cigarette lighter outlet instead of a 9V battery.
I've had the opportunity to use this system for a couple of days, and I must say that I really like it. I don't often need emergency power, but I think that carrying this little adapter and a 9-volt battery is much more convenient that the other options I've tried, like the Electric Fuel system. It's compact, and the shelf life of a small 9-volt battery is usually a couple of years.
I ran my iPAQ's internal battery down to about 20%, plugged in the Emergency Charger, and let it sit unused overnight. I didn't keep track of how long it took to completely recharge the iPAQ, but by morning my device was ready to use. Then, later that day, after using the iPAQ some more, I used the cigarette lighter adapter in order to continue working. The whole system worked flawlessly.
The only part of the system that I have concerns about is the fact that the adapter is completely rigid, so using the device with the charger attached was a tad awkward; so, I was always worried that I would accidentally snap it off and break the charger. In reality, however, the plastic held up just fine.
The price of the system is reasonable:
Emergency Power Kit (connector, charger and cigarette adapter): $24.95
Emergency Power Charger (connector and charger only): $19.95
Interchangeable Connector for Compaq, HP and Casio Pocket PCs: $10.95
If there is EVER a chance that you could find yourself without AC power for your Pocket PC, this is a system you should seriously consider buying.
Seidio, a subsidiary of Promax Wireless Products, has introduced a novel, but useful, system for remote charging of Pocket PC devices. Their Emergency Power Kit includes everything you need to get your depleted device up and running again, no matter where you are.
By simply attaching a 9-volt battery to the kit's Emergency Power Charger, your device can be completely and quickly recharged. You can even purchase different adapters for various devices, making the charger very versatile. <!>
In addition, the full kit comes with a cigarette lighter adapter for powering the charger from a cigarette lighter outlet instead of a 9V battery.
I've had the opportunity to use this system for a couple of days, and I must say that I really like it. I don't often need emergency power, but I think that carrying this little adapter and a 9-volt battery is much more convenient that the other options I've tried, like the Electric Fuel system. It's compact, and the shelf life of a small 9-volt battery is usually a couple of years.
I ran my iPAQ's internal battery down to about 20%, plugged in the Emergency Charger, and let it sit unused overnight. I didn't keep track of how long it took to completely recharge the iPAQ, but by morning my device was ready to use. Then, later that day, after using the iPAQ some more, I used the cigarette lighter adapter in order to continue working. The whole system worked flawlessly.
The only part of the system that I have concerns about is the fact that the adapter is completely rigid, so using the device with the charger attached was a tad awkward; so, I was always worried that I would accidentally snap it off and break the charger. In reality, however, the plastic held up just fine.
The price of the system is reasonable:
Emergency Power Kit (connector, charger and cigarette adapter): $24.95
Emergency Power Charger (connector and charger only): $19.95
Interchangeable Connector for Compaq, HP and Casio Pocket PCs: $10.95
If there is EVER a chance that you could find yourself without AC power for your Pocket PC, this is a system you should seriously consider buying.
