Coin-sized nuclear 3V battery with 50-year lifespan enters mass production

[CommonSenseNow]

What they fail to tell you (As all tech blogger hacks seem to leave the really important things out when they write an article about nothing) is these things have been around for years. YouTubers have made their own versions from tritium vials and solar cells. They are in the end, utterly useless wasted of venture capital. They can't supply more than 1/200000 the power of a pair of AA batteries.

This story is like heralding a new pipe that you can connect your home to, that doesn't connect to the city water main, and can provide your home with unlimited water....at 3.2 drops per hour, and it will cost $12,000.

These batteries have been around for many years....but they are still none the less completely useless.

 

[Rehri]

"... beta particles emitted during radioactive decay – a safer and more compact alternative ..."

Beta particles aren't safe. It is ****ing radioactive. Sure it might be a small dosage, but a small dosage over the span of 10 years is a lot.

 

[jeffbert]

Wow! Some people are really intense about this topic! Or are they talking about smart watches more than the things that power them?

 

[toooooot]

A phone typically uses 5W but may go up to 15+
For 5W it will need 50 of these ... if the price is ~$500 a piece as someone mentioned in the comments ...
Anyway, great for really small stuff, and when the price drops 100x for bigger stuff as well.

There is no machinery or equipment that lasts 50 years though, except for the American cars in Cuba. They should electrify them.
--
EDIT: I was 1000x wrong, as Puiu pointed out. For 5W you need 50,000 pcs, not 50. This makes this battery more of a curiosity than something with practical implications.

I saw news about this type of battery long time ago. Obviously, they work and improve them. But due to the amount of power it can produce, it offers a very limited application. Army or Space industry, maybe. To power something like probes traveling to other planets and will spend years there.

 

[toooooot]

Meh, the Chinese would likely subsidize the hell out of it to make it competitive on price.

There is a general rule about Chinese industries.
It goes like this: Is it promising? If yes, it is most definitely subsidized.

 

[gamerk2]

There is a general rule about Chinese industries.
It goes like this: Is it promising? If yes, it is most definitely subsidized.

That's why they're rapidly pulling ahead of *everyone* when it comes to teach. They don't care if they lose Billions in dead-end technology; they want to make sure whatever ends up winning in the market, that they own it and control said market.

Compare that to the US, where such investments are seen purely as expenses.

 

[toooooot]

That's why they're rapidly pulling ahead of *everyone* when it comes to teach. They don't care if they lose Billions in dead-end technology; they want to make sure whatever ends up winning in the market, that they own it and control said market.

Compare that to the US, where such investments are seen purely as expenses.

I have long suspected that there might be unpredictable outcomes, the kinds of outcomes that happen decades after the laws and regulations are established.
I am not an expert in the global economy, but there is probably more than one reason why developed countries do not subsidize their economies so aggressively. Furthermore, I studied very well how a mighty modern empire that worked very hard to be the strongest military power in Europe seized to exist just 70 years after it was created on the ruins of Tsar's Russia.

 

[01steeda]

Oops. The idea is good but Chinese company... a moving nuclear bomb...

My thoughts exactly, anyone REALLY trust a mass produced nuclear device from the CCP??

 

[Z0H4Nh04]

2x 3v would be atleast 1/3 less weight then a 5 volt lipo with a aditional 1v. You could possibly get 60 years use with low use cases. Like flashlights for emergency use. Longterm responce prepardness would be a lot less matience.

 

[Cocojambo13]

Oops. The idea is good but Chinese company... a moving nuclear bomb...

just stop with the stereotypes.

 

[Cal Jeffrey]

Can it really charge that fast? I've never actually had a SmartWatch (Apple or otherwise) and always assumed it had to charge overnight... still, I'd much prefer not having to charge at all - I wear a Tissot self-winding watch that has been great for almost 20 years...

Edit: it seems like the Apple Watch takes 2-3 hours to fully charge.. not fast enough...

Let's find out. My Apple Watch just happens to be 0% right now (don't usually let it go that low, but forgot to put it on yesterday). I'll put it on the charger as soon as I hit post on this comment then post again when it is 100%. It is several years old, so it might take longer to charge than if it were new, but it should be a rough idea of 0-100 charging time.

 

[Cal Jeffrey]

Let's find out. My Apple Watch just happens to be 0% right now (don't usually let it go that low, but forgot to put it on yesterday). I'll put it on the charger as soon as I hit post on this comment then post again when it is 100%. It is several years old, so it might take longer to charge than if it were new, but it should be a rough idea of 0-100 charging time.

On charger at 0825--reached 50% by 0853. So less than 30 minutes to reach 50%.
100% 1013, so less than 2 hours to fully charge.

 

[Squid Surprise]

On charger at 0825--reached 50% by 0853. So less than 30 minutes to reach 50%.
100% 1013, so less than 2 hours to fully charge.

Not bad… still not fast enough for me to buy one - but hope for the future!

 

[jeffbert]

On charger at 0825--reached 50% by 0853. So less than 30 minutes to reach 50%.
100% 1013, so less than 2 hours to fully charge.

Not going to have the battery very long, if you discharge it all the way to zero. My Dyson V6 cuts off long before that could ever happen. I hope to have this battery last more than a few years.

 

[Cal Jeffrey]

Not going to have the battery very long, if you discharge it all the way to zero. My Dyson V6 cuts off long before that could ever happen. I hope to have this battery last more than a few years.

As I said, I don't usually let it fully discharge, but it happens occasionally. Oddly, doing so sparks an odd bug (feature?) where it won't charge unless I use a charger connected directly to my Mac. At any rate, so far, the battery only shows typical signs of age. It's a Series 4 I bought in 2018, so for 7 a 7-year-old, I would say it has better-than-expected battery life. It's only in the last 18 months or so that I have noticed it does not last as long. It used to get two days on a charge, and that dipped to about a day and a half a while back. Currently, it gets to about 35-40% by the end of the day.