Windows Phone Thoughts: All is Not Rosy With Fuel Cells?

"Early fuel cells will probably have as much as a 5-to-1 advantage over similar-size (but heavier) batteries, Barnett says. Theoretically, the ratio could increase to 10-to-1 as the technology improves...To double the energy capacity of a standard battery, you would have to make the battery twice as massive...Fuel cells need their own batteries. Most portable devices have varied power demands, requiring a large flow of electricity at certain times and a tiny trickle at others. Batteries handle this variety well, but fuel cells tend to produce a steady stream of juice. The answer is to provide both a battery and a fuel cell, so the device can draw from the battery when demand is high, and run off the fuel cell when demand is lower. The fuel cell could be used to recharge the battery, depending on need."

I took the most negative quotes from the linked article to illustrate the potential problems with fuel cells. I'm still a big believer in the technology, but the problems surfacing have tempered my excitement for it quite a bit. It's funny - people talk about the hectic pace of the technology industry, but when you take a step back, the big changes actually take years to accomplish, and in this regard the tech industry seems unbearably slow.