Apple's coolest innovation: battery technology

Perhaps the most exciting new technology Apple unveiled last week wasn’t the $10,000 smartwatch or the new gold Macbook, but the revolutionary battery technology that could determine how long future Apple products, including your next phone, last.

Apple's innovative battery technology has been used in the ultra-thin MacBook. In order to accommodate its 13.1mm thickness and drive the 12-inch Retina screen, Apple engineers had to develop a new battery technology. After careful research, they designed a stepped battery grid that can increase the power of Apple products by 35%.

It may seem like a low-level innovation, but it is a very clever design. In fact, this battery innovation has injected new ideas into battery design.

A new concept for batteries

A typical lithium-ion battery cell consists of a collection of thin aluminum or copper sheets, special coatings that absorb lithium ions, and plastic layers. Everything inside the battery is extremely thin.

According to a patent application in early 2012, Apple wants to figure out how to make these multi-layer electrode sheets suitable for devices of any size. After careful research and development by engineers, these batteries of different sizes can be stacked together, so as to achieve as many battery stacks as possible in any limited space.

To integrate the stepped battery cells inside the MacBook, Apple said it used high-speed cameras to record the assembly and battery changes every minute, allowing Apple to integrate each cell in the battery with unprecedented precision.

At the same time, Apple said it reversed the chemical formula inside the battery cell. Although it cannot change the shape of the battery, it can improve the efficiency of the MacBook battery by changing the battery composition.

Apple says the MacBook has achieved 9 hours of battery life, which may not sound enough, considering the 13-inch Air has 12 hours of battery life. But when you think about the tiny battery that drives the ultra-high pixel density of the Retina screen, you'll be amazed. The 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro has a battery life of 10 hours, and the 15-inch has 8 hours. But for the same battery, the lighter and thinner MacBook will have a longer standby time.

Adaptable Innovation

What's even more exciting is that while the MacBook is the first to use the new battery technology, we could see it applied to other Apple devices as well. The iPhone's S series (like the iPhone 4s or 5S) has seen fewer hardware updates, but with the release of the streamlined iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, this year's S series may also use the new battery technology. And such an excellent battery design may also be used in iPads, future MacBook Airs or MacBook Pros and other devices.

Even if we don’t see this technology immediately applied to new products, we will see it one day. The most important result of this battery innovation is that it can bring about changes in the batteries of all devices. Hardware designers were once slaves to batteries, and innovative battery technology liberates designers, allowing them to first complete their own designs as they please, and then let the battery adapt to the design, rather than letting the battery constrain their design.

So it's clear that Apple has designed a battery that frees Jony Ive and his team to let their imaginations soar to the limitless possibilities. In addition to the stepped stacked batteries in the MacBook, the trapezoidal battery can also theoretically be used in round, triangular and other shaped devices. However, this does not mean that we will see a trapezoidal iPad soon. But at least it makes unconstrained design concepts possible.

The battery technology also doesn't detract from the overall lifespan of the battery, and the new MacBook can be recharged 1,000 times, just like other Apple laptops. The only downside is that it's difficult to replace the battery yourself unless you buy a new laptop. In other words, Apple doesn't like you to replace the battery at will. However, this is Apple's usual style.

All in all, Apple has designed a brand new, crazy battery technology that will end the woes of lithium-ion batteries. It's still a long way off, but Apple will give its devices, and you, an unprecedented user experience.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.