(TNO) A new Microsoft research project could open up a future of much longer-lasting laptop batteries, according to Business Insider.
 The use of battery power on laptops will be smarter thanks to Microsoft – Screenshot |
Currently, laptop batteries work in a fairly simple way: you have a large lithium-ion battery embedded inside the laptop that is responsible for providing power to the specific hardware performing specific activities. Essentially, that means that if you’re doing something like gaming or watching a movie, the processor and graphics card will need a lot of power from the battery to make them work smoothly. Otherwise, you’ll feel uncomfortable moving between them.
Until now, most companies have focused on improving battery life by bringing high-capacity batteries into the products. Which is good, because computers need enough power to meet the job requirements on them.
However, Microsoft’s research department has come up with a different solution to develop smarter laptops. Their solution is still in the prototype stage, meaning it will take some time before you can get your hands on a laptop equipped with a smart battery if Microsoft is successful.
Essentially, Microsoft’s solution is to bundle all sorts of batteries made from different materials and then use software developed in the operating system to manage smarter energy usage.
In other words, your operating system can detect when you’re working on a document, thereby helping reduce the energy used by the battery to make it last longer. If you’re gaming, it switches to high-energy mode. Ultimately this will help optimize battery usage as efficiently as possible.
According to Microsoft, to make this system work, the company has developed a type of “machine learning” software that is currently being used internally by the company to detect fraudulent credit cards. Machine learning will allow the battery to know your habits.
So if you’re the type of laptop user who always plugs and unplugs the charger from the computer in the office, this system is smart enough to bring you the fastest charging capability so you always maintain battery power in it.
Microsoft said this idea could be applied to everything, from laptops to phones, cars, or even airplanes. Although it is still unclear which area will be the first to receive new improvements from Microsoft.
