Wireless power charges gadgets

You could soon be saying goodbye to having several different chargers for all your handheld gadgets like your mobile phone or MP3 player.
A British start-up called SplashPower has come up with technology that can charge all of them at once, without having to plug any of them into the mains.

The system is based around a small flat mat that plugs into the main electricity supply and a special module inside a gadget.

"You pick up your phone, drop it on the pad and it charges. The pad does all the thinking for you," explained David Whitewood, Vice President of Business Development for SplashPower.

The technology developed by SplashPower is based on the principle of magnetic inductive power transfer.

Inductive charging systems are already used in products like rechargeable electric toothbrushes.

"That technology had a lot of limitations," said Mr Whitewood, "and SplashPower have come up with a solution that works for mobile electronic equipment."

'Green pay-off'

"The cost to add SplashPower technology to phones or MP3 players is very low and very affordable"
David Whitewood, SplashPower

The system works by generating a magnetic field which transfers the energy into a gadget with a Splash module. This in turn transforms the energy into the direct current that the battery uses to recharge.

The company says the system is perfectly safe and will not even wipe credit cards if you accidentally put one on the pad.

The Cambridge-based company is talking to the big electronics manufacturers about integrating the technology into their products.

"The cost to add the SplashPower technology to phones or MP3 players is very low and very affordable," said Mr Whitewood.

The company says the technology will only add 25 cents to the cost of a device and the module itself is less than a millimetre thick.

The system could hold added benefits for businesses such as mobile phone manufacturers as it could help them cut costs.

"You don't have to put a charger in every box if you implement splashpower in your products," said Mr Whitewood, "and there's a green pay-off in that.

"Every time you change your mobile phone, you perhaps keep your charger in a drawer or throw it away. With SplashPower, you wouldn't have to do that."

The company hopes to see the first pads on sale by the end of the year, costing between $25 and $50

Google ranked 'worst' on privacy

Google has the worst privacy policy of popular net firms, says a report.

Rights group Privacy International rated the search giant as "hostile" to privacy in a report ranking web firms by how they handle personal data.

The group said Google was leading a "race to the bottom" among net firms many of whom had policies that did little to substantially protect users.

In response Google said the report was mistaken and that it worked hard to keep user data confidential.

Hostile approach

The report by the veteran cyber rights group is the result of six months' research which scrutinised 20 popular net firms to find out how they handle the personal information users gave up when they started using such services.

None of the firms featured in the report got a "privacy friendly" rating.

Yahoo and AOL were said to have "substantial threats" to privacy as were Facebook and Hi5 for the allegedly poor way they dealt with user data.

Microsoft, one place higher in the rankings than these four firms, was described as having "serious lapses" in its privacy policy.

Other net sites, such as BBC.com, eBay and Last.fm were described in the report as "generally privacy aware but in need of improvement".

But Privacy International singled put Google at the bottom of its rankings for what the group called its "numerous deficiencies and hostilities" to privacy.

"We are aware that the decision to place Google at the bottom of the ranking is likely to be controversial," the group said in the report.

Privacy International placed Google at the bottom of its ranking because of the sheer amount of data it gathers about users and their activities; because its privacy policies are incomplete and for its poor record of responding to complaints.

"While a number of companies share some of these negative elements, none comes close to achieving status as an endemic threat to privacy," read the report.

Responding to the report Nicole Wong, general counsel for Google, said in a statement: "We are disappointed with Privacy International's report which is based on numerous inaccuracies and misunderstandings about our services."

Ms Wong added: "We recognise that user trust is central to our business and Google aggressively protects our users' privacy."

Privacy International said it planned to release a more detailed report in September produced after detailed consultation with the firms covered in the first draft.

Singer Michael avoids jail term

George Michael has been sentenced to 100 hours of community service and banned from driving for two years at Brent Magistrates court, north London.

The 43-year-old had pleaded guilty to driving while unfit, blaming "tiredness and prescribed drugs" for the offence.

He was arrested in October last year after being found slumped at the steering wheel of his car.

The pop star, who performs at Wembley Stadium this weekend, has expressed regret over the incident.

"I was ashamed I had done something really wrong in putting other people at risk," he told the court.

Following sentencing, the singer was in a bullish mood outside the court, smiling and laughing with fans.

Reading from a prepared statement, he called the media coverage of the case "farcical" and said reporters had concentrated on the prosecution's case.

"I'm glad to put this behind me," he added. "Now I'm off to do the biggest show of my life."