The smartwatches of the future will be able to run forever

Apr 11, 2014 07:38 GMT  ·  By

In a new breakthrough, scientists have managed to develop a thin, flexible patch capable of converting body heat into electricity.

Wearables are the “hottest” thing in tech right now and even if customers aren't lining up outside retail locations days before the devices hit the stores, it doesn't mean that they aren't curious about them.

If you weren't impressed by Samsung’s new Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo smartwatches and Geat Fit heath-centric band, you should know that more wearables are coming. Google has recently announced its own dedicated OS for wearables, entitled Android Wear.

And LG and Motorola have already jumped at the opportunity to be the first companies to bring new smartwatches running this dedicated OS.

In a recent post, we have told you that one of the things that wearable makers need to improve in order to make smartwatches go mainstream is overall device life span. One of the complaints that Galaxy Gear adopters had was the insufficient battery life, which extended to 24 hours.

Battery life is a very important factor to take into consideration, especially for people who receive a lot of messages and emails. For some users, having to recharge the smartwatch every single day might prove to be a real hassle and could constitute a real drawback when considering if the device is worthy of purchase or not.

The Gear 2 Neo is currently recharged by virtue of microUBS, but what if there's a better way of doing things? A way that would allow users to use their own body heat to pump life into the smartwatch?

Well, it appears that this futuristic scenario might become a reality soon enough. The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology has developed a small, flexible patch that converts body heat into electricity, says Slashgear.

Subsequently, the implementation of the technology into wearables will allow smartwatches and the like to keep going on forever, in theory. Imagine going outside for a run with your smartwatch being low on battery. By the time you get back, your device’s power levels would certainly be bumped up.

We heard of patches capable of generating power from heat in the past, but the one developed at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology can maximize power output while remaining thin and flexible.

The patch is made of glass fibers fused together to create a sheet. Pastes are pressed down into the fabric, capable of converting heat into electricity by assessing the difference between the person’s skin and the surrounding air.