It is inconvenient to have to worry about battery life for our portable
and mobile devices such as laptops, tablets, cameras, and phones. When
traveling, we must bring an array of power cords for wall sockets and
car chargers. It is possible, in the next 15-20 years, to have Wireless
Electricity Service Providers (WESP) that we can subscribe to for our
various devices. Much like wireless broadband access, WESP can give us
wireless and persistent access to electricity to low wattage devices.
The
two major forces standing in the way of this innovation are
technological and economical. Wireless electricity technology (also
called witricity) currently exists in limited hardware applications. The
Palm Pre Touchstone (an HP product), for example, has a wireless
charging dock. The vision of WESP negates the need for docks or other
tactile components. The second force that must be overcome for WESP to
be realized is economical. This force has two significant aspects:
R&D and personal. The R&D economical aspect refers to the need
for R&D funding. The personal economical aspect refers to the
expense of new WESP-enabled devices and monthly subscriber fees. Like
most new technologies, the initial cost to consumers is likely to be
higher than most mainstream consumers (i.e. not early adopters) will
want to expend.
