Around the Net
New 'Passive' WiFi Uses Less Power For Connecting Objects
- Fortune, Wednesday, March 9, 2016 9:05 AM
Electrical engineers at the University of Washington have come up with a new type of Wi-Fi hardware that uses 10,000 times less power than existing technology, Wiredreports. That could have big implications for mobile and embedded applications, helping smartphone batteries last longer, reducing the power demands of devices in the Internet of Things, and ultimately making internet connectivity practical for a much wider range of devices. The technology, dubbed “Passive Wi-Fi,” relies on a phenomenon known as “backscatter.” While most Wi-Fi connections currently require two powered radio signals, the new standard would need only a single powered device, which would generate a single-frequency signal.
