Autonomy is one of the essential elements of a connected watch. It should last at least a day, because who would want to charge a watch every afternoon to last into the evening? Manufacturers invest heavily to keep small batteries in their products for as long as possible.
Through the use of software tricks, some connected watches can be used for several days without causing the battery to starve … But you have to limit yourself to the basic functions. And these products are doing much more today than they were a few years ago: GPS, continuous health measurements, ever-larger and brighter displays …
The sun to the rescue of our dolls
In fact, the autonomy of connected watches has not experienced a real increase, even the opposite is often the case. The Galaxy Watch 4 is thus satisfied with a 24 to 48 hour operation before a mandatory recharge. But for him Smart Watches from Samsung, things could change if the manufacturer took advantage of one of its new patents.
Samsung is working on a watch that can be recharged with solar energy. In the field of watches, connected or not, solar energy is nothing new, several manufacturers such as Casio or Garmin have demonstrated the viability of this technology. Samsung envisioned photovoltaic cells in the product’s wristband, which take the form of a honeycomb structure invisible to the naked eye.
The patent explains that with two cells placed on each side of the case, the amount of solar energy would be enough to power the watch’s battery. Better yet, it would only take a few hours of sunshine for it to function normally. Until we see this technology appear in a future Galaxy Watch 5, there is still an important step, although the patent is very detailed. We will have to be attentive to the rumors for next summer, Samsung will present a new range of connected watches.
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