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Test Drive
PowerPad 160
$499
Electrofuel
416/535-1114
("http://www.electrofuel.com" TARGET = "_blank") www.electrofuel.com
It's Murphy's law of notebook batteries: Your machine runs out of juice just when you need it most. That is, unless you're carrying a new type of external notebook battery that offers unheard-of stamina. In our test of a preproduction Electrofuel PowerPad 160 battery, the unit ran an IBM ThinkPad 560 Pentium MMX-233 notebook for 15 hours. That's about five times the life of that ThinkPad's standard battery.
Electrofuel's breakthrough is welcome news: Speedy notebook chips, extra-big screens, and entertaining DVD-ROM drives work great but consume power in huge gulps. Yet lithium ion battery technology, today's standard, was invented way back in the 1940s.
How did Toronto-based Electrofuel improve lithium ion batteries? By using highly efficient packaging and a proprietary chemical process.
Time Is on Your Side
The company's debut product, the $499 PowerPad 160, is a rectangular, 3/8-inch-thick battery that sits underneath a laptop,...