Smartwatches are not endowed with the greatest battery life, thanks to the limited space available. But for the increasingly large number of circular smartwatches on the market, there’s one simple change that could yield a quarter more power: stop trying to fit rectangular batteries into round bodies.
LG Chem, the battery-making division of Korean manufacturer LG, is releasing a hexagonal battery aimed at circular watches, claiming that by filling empty space with extra battery, you’ll get more time away from the charger (flawless logic, I know). The company seems to have a point: if you look at, say, the Moto 360’s logic board in iFixit’s teardown, it is clear that there’s some wasted space around the edges of the battery.
Whether it turns out to give an extra 25 per cent juice remains to be seen, but the concept is certainly sound — and with wearable devices being made in all sorts of weird shapes and sizes, oddly-shaped batteries are probably going to become the norm.
[9to5Google via Engadget]