Romeo Power [1]has just announced what looks to be the mobile charging device of my dreams.
Its wand-shaped “Saber,” using the company’s proprietary power management technology, is a compact little charger that seems ideal for keeping my three-year-old, busted-up MacBook running when I’m on the go.
My computer shuts down within five minutes if it’s separated from an outlet, which means I can’t reap the only benefit of my blogging existence… working from anywhere (Malibu beaches, I’m looking at you[2]).
At least, that was the case until I saw my Romeo (power pack that is).
The company was founded by engineers and designers from SpaceX, Tesla, Samsung, Apple and Amazon, and the personal power pack they designed uses the same technology the company has raised $30 million to roll out[3] for electric vehicles and stationary battery packs.
“Saber is like having a wall socket in your pocket,” touts Dion Isselhardt, the company’s chief design officer and the former senior director of design at Samsung’s Strategy and Innovation Center.
The charger offers 86 watt-hours of power, charges fully in two hours and can recharge most laptops two times. It can charge a tablet two-to-four-times and a phone more than 10 times, the company said.
In outlet-empty, coffee shop-rich cities like Los Angeles, where would-be scribblers would ideally like to spend hours tap-tap-tapping away on the next big screenplay, these chargers could be a blessing (for restaurants and coffee shops… not so much).
The only other battery packs I’ve seen come close are ChargeTech’s[4], which retail for $249 and are a little bulkier in design. Other battery packs offer a lot of the same charging capabilities, but size and the AC...