[gearlive]http://blip.tv/file/get/Bleedingedge-CES0523PowerbeamWirelessPowerfixedupmov948.flv[/gearlive]

Cordless extension cords? Powerbeam has it covered. Right now, Powerbeam is perfecting a wireless, laser-based power transfer system that can act as an extension cord to power devices using a line-of-sight system that will send power as far as you need it to go. The lasers are about the size of pepper flakes, and will transfer tens of watts of power, and in the future could transfer more. Check the video for the full scoop on what looks to be a pretty cool solution for transferring power wirelessly.

My husband and I go through batteries like crazy, and we have so many power cords along the wall its not funny. We were just talking about coming up with a way to transfer power wirelessly not too long ago, and then I find this! This is soooo cool. I just wish it was a little more advanced, and marketed for the average homebuyer/user, etc. This is definitely going to become popular in the near future.

I see this as a big seller, people using this. No more wires would be great. I hate dealing with wires, and I hate having to untangle them. Getting power with a little beam of laser light the size of a pepper flake, woukld save some money on that electric bill, and its safe to.

I think they mentioned in the clip that it is a class 1 laser, which is described on wikipedia as “... safe under all conditions of normal use. This means the maximum permissible exposure (MPE) cannot be exceeded. This class includes high-power lasers within an enclosure that prevents exposure to the radiation and that cannot be opened without shutting down the laser. For example, a continuous laser at 600 nm can emit up to 0.39 mW, but for shorter wavelengths, the maximum emission is lower because of the potential of those wavelengths to generate photochemical damage. The maximum emission is also related to the pulse duration in the case of pulsed lasers and the degree of spatial coherence.”

However, with such a small emission, it is not feasible to run much more than the toy shown, unless you have a large quantity of them.

That is awesome technology for future. In my opinion It everyday technology needs it more than scientific. HOpe its developement goes all fine.

This is really interesting concept, when first he said that it is calss 1 laser technology i thought it will be harmful but its not