Of the many, many tech gadgets I’ve tried over several decades as a tech writer, a few stand out in my mind because of their ingenuity, beauty or both.
The TDK Wireless Charging Speaker is one of these. Made by then-Minnesota-based Imation in a licensing deal with Japan’s TDK, the compact audio gizmo kicked out nice sound.
But what made it unusual was it’s top surface, which incorporated a wireless-charging technology call Qi (“chee”).
Newfangled at the time, Qi allowed certain kinds of phones (including iPhones, if they were fitted with a special kind of case) to replenish their batteries simply by being placed on a wireless-power surface.
I was then was pretty taken with Qi, and predicted it would soon be a big deal. I was a bit over-optimistic. But now, at last, that prognostication is coming to pass.
I mention this because Apple recently incorporated Qi into its current-model iPhones (no add-on cases required), which is giving the technology a boost.
I recently wrote about this for TidBITS.
For that article, It tested out more than a dozen iPhone-friendly wireless-charging pads, discussed an upcoming Apple-branded pad, and looked ahead to developments on the horizon.
I also wrote about iPhone wireless charging for the Pioneer Press not too long ago.
Today's Joy of Tech comic!
