Hasta La Gadget!

Oh, how the winds of fortune can swirl. Just a few weeks after finally selling its first LiFe electric car to a happy couple in Atlanta, Wheego appears to have suddenly fallen on hard financial times. Very hard times. Speaking to Automotive News, CEO Mike McQuary claimed that his startup’s coffers are bare enough to jeopardize future production of Wheego’s flagship, battery-powered two-seater:

“My constraint is primarily capital. We’ll be living hand-to-mouth as we try to get the first cars built. The next 200 will creep out as we raise money.”

McQuary didn’t say how far behind schedule Wheego is at the moment, but part of the problem seems to be finding enough money to buy parts for its $32,995, 100-mile range EVs. The company’s plant in California was supposed to produce 200 vehicles a month starting in January, in the hopes of eventually churning out 60,000 a year. Those plans, however, were soon derailed, due to unexpectedly delayed approval from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration — a setback that also hurt the company’s capital raising campaigns. The company is hoping to raise some $15 million with the help of a VC firm in Connecticut, but until it does, Wheego may not be going anywhere.

Wheego needs more cash to produce LiFe EVs, ‘living hand-to-mouth’ for now originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 May 2011 09:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jim O’Donnell, CEO and chairman of BMW North America, recently sat down with the Detroit News to discuss the ActiveE — an electric version of BMW’s 1 Series coupe, available for lease in the US this fall. Most CEOs would’ve probably used the opportunity to wax PR poetic about their company’s bold, forward-looking ethos, because that’s what CEOs do. O’Donnell, however, used the occasion to let us in on a dirty little secret: EVs don’t actually work. According to O’Donnell’s undoubtedly robust calculations, EVs won’t work for “at least 90-percent” of the human population, at current battery ranges. The situation is so dire, in fact, that the US government shouldn’t even bother wasting its $7,500 tax credits on frivolous things like innovation, national security and clean air.

“I believe in a free economy. I think we should abolish all tax credits. What they are doing is putting a bet on technology, which is not appropriate. As a taxpayer, I am not sure this is the right way to go.”

O’Donnell went on to say he’s “far more optimistic” about diesel’s chances of increasing BMW’s US market share — because, you know, it’s not like the oil industry gets any tax breaks, or anything. And it’s not like diverting some money away from oil subsidies and putting it toward EV technology would create the “level playing field” that O’Donnell and his company so desperately need. No siree, the US energy market is just as pure and fair as it’s always been — and it certainly doesn’t deserve to be corrupted by an EV tax credit pestilence. That said, O’Donnell would still really appreciate it if we buy the battery-powered i3 when it launches in 2013. Who knows? He may even throw in a free bridge, too.

CE-Oh no he didn’t!: BMW exec says electric vehicles ‘won’t work,’ but would love to sell you one anyway originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Apr 2011 08:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve seen plenty of wireless charging solutions that employ inductive power and other technologies to charge devices directly (heck, your next car may even have a Powermat in its console), but Panasonic’s Chargepad may be the first such product to charge, well, other chargers, rather than gadgets themselves. At launch, the Chargepad will only be compatible with two models, the QE-PL101-W and QE-PL201-W, which you can use to juice up cell phones and other USB-compatible devices on the go. We’d love to see the company embedding inductive charging components in its cameras and other devices instead, but if you’re an early adopter who happens to live in Japan, then you can expect to pay between $110-130 (open pricing, depending on battery capacity) for the Chargepad and a mobile charger when these hit stores on June 24.

Update: As reader SegueToNowhere points out, the Chargepad has a Qi logo, meaning it should work with your favorite Qi devices.

Panasonic Chargepad wirelessly juices up mobile chargers, nothing else originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A lot of portable PC power cells last for only four or five hours, after which you’ll find yourself chained to a wall socket. Good thing there are external batteries to keep us in current when a plug’s nowhere to be found, and Tom’s Hardware has done some benchmarking on a slew of such devices so you’ll know which one’s suited for you. A Dell Vostro 3300 and an Inspiron Mini 10 running Windows 7 were used to put packs from Amstron, Brunton, Digipower, Electrovaya, Energizer, Lenmar, PowerTraveller and Tekkeon through some real-world paces — we’re talking word processing and web surfing, not fragging and film editing. So if you’re in the market for a mobile power unit, hit the source link and get the down and dirty on which external battery’s best.

External batteries benchmarked, the portable juice is loose originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The wise folks who brought us the inductive Magic Charger for the Magic Mouse are now back with a new trick up their sleeves. This time we have the Mobee Magic Bar, which can energise either an Apple Wireless Keyboard or a Magic Trackpad thanks to their identical dual AA battery compartment. To get some wireless charging action, simply install the supplied battery cylinder to either device (presumably extra cylinders will also be available for purchasing), and then slide the protruding part into the charging dock. Of course, the nature of this setup limits the number of compatible devices (unlike the flat Magic Charger), but this is still more convenient than unscrewing the lid every time you run out of juice. If this Magic Bar tickles your fancy, you can pick one up around end of June for $59.90 — pre-order starts on May 15th.

Continue reading Mobee’s Magic Bar brings inductive charging to your Apple bluetooth keyboard and Magic Trackpad

Mobee’s Magic Bar brings inductive charging to your Apple bluetooth keyboard and Magic Trackpad originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 01:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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