Amazon Live | Be an Anker Engineer

PowerPort III Nano deal appears to be dead.

1 Like

Correct and now I look I see @AP_Gotzon included a one week old offer.

I edited the image away, thanks for highlighting.

1 Like

Well as @ktkundy was on and not correcting then implicitly it was not an issue to the person that matters. I was more thinking it seems to be the default gender of geeky people to be male.

As to feedback on this idea of ask an engineer and idea. I really enjoy it personally.

I like to see diversity of ideas, someone out there has the next big idea and they donā€™t know it, and so asking gets it tickled out of their imagination.

Iā€™d also like to see why it is a good ideaa, why it is a bad idea, how challenging it would be.

So Robā€™s (@Tank) idea I was thinking when it came up:

  • yes flexible solar panels do exist, so itā€™s viable today
  • yes a roll-out, pull-out solar panel does solve the issue of you do need a lot of solar panel to make a useful energy source, possibly better than folding out rigid panels do currently.
  • weight, size issues, the flashlight necessarily is thicker.
  • the times of year flashlights used most (winter) conflicts with the time of the year solar is best (summer) so there is an inherent conflict.
  • would like to see it made and tested.

The modular idea:

  • it has been tried before, it didnā€™t work due to reliability issues at the connections.
  • I was wondering if any technology change had occured recently to make this idea revisited work better next time.

@ktkundy idea, I was thinking

  • looks a neat idea, solves laptop being hot with newer laptops getting fewer ports and more dongles needed.
  • I was wondering if the heat could be turned to someone useful, say in winter the heat could be transferred to somethingā€¦ (cup drink warmer) ?

Combo battery +flashlight

  • Anker did used to make combo battery+light in the past, in fact I think most of them were once
  • in the past they were feeble emergency lights
  • issue with most flashlights currently for camping is it makes a blindspot in your vision in exactly the wrong place so a spread out diffuse light protects night vision better, so I was thinking yes a diffuse has merits camping.

The wide wireless pad:

  • these products exist now
  • Anker has two rings in the stand pads to handle phone portrait + landscape.
  • other vendors have two or three rings offset from each other.
  • the technical challenge is allowing both a fuzzy location and multiple devices, as the Qi standard doesnā€™t allow both concurrently. So this idea probably fails Qi compliance.

Solar fan powerbank;

  • pondering
  • I can see reasons its a bad idea, as in general youā€™d be shielding yourself from sun when hot so you arenā€™t under the sun, so not near the fan. If Iā€™m moving Iā€™m making my own breeze, if Iā€™m stationary Iā€™m seeking the shadiest spot I can find so not in sun for this to be powered.
  • I was thinking a USB rechargeable fan would be a viable Anker product to make, and then have it recharged via solar panel , so you could go walking leaving solar + rechargeable fan out charging, then return and use the fan when sat down?
  • so Anker make a rechargeable batter fan?

Smartwallet:

  • I thought a bad idea
  • wallets are in pockets
  • pockets donā€™t like weight
  • youā€™d not put the weight of a battery in your pocket
  • if became real, people would not like its weight.

Smart sunglasses

  • these exist now. e.g. Bose
  • bone conductance behind the ears so you can hear without others hearing
  • camera at front
  • these have become socially unpopular, people donā€™t like being photoā€™d without them knowing. People with smartglasses are asked to take them off.
  • I am often out biking with eye covering to keep debris out of eyes (insects mostly) and I am sometimes listening to phone directions, so I did buy some smart glasses and immediately disliked, they were unworkable for me, gave them away to someone else to try.
1 Like

Flashlight Solar Charger

  • It certainly is an interesting concept
  • I donā€™t see myself using it
  • no further comment

Modular Battery

  • a lot of wasted space between batteryā€™s because of the plastic/rubber/connectors
  • I donā€™t see how this is better then having one large (20000mAh) and one small (<10000mAh) battery packs.

Laptop cooler and port hub

  • many coolers exist like this, but Iā€™ve never seen one with the ports functionality
  • I really like the idea of an all-in-one laptop hub
  • I donā€™t like the idea of thunderbolt since it limits those who can use it, and skyrockets the price
  • integration of more all-in-one features would also be awesome

Battery + Flashlight combo

  • this is already been done plenty of times
  • The exact product idea seems to be a pure rip of the ā€œLitMobileā€ (which is a drop shipped AliExpress product)

Wireless charging pad

  • already exists from both anker, and other brands

Solar fan powerbank

  • I donā€™t get it

Smart wallet

  • seems very gimmicky
  • small cells with low capacity are necessary
  • wireless charging reduces the capacity even further (high energy loss)

Smart sunglasses

  • I like the idea overall
  • apple us trying to fix the the camera privacy issues by using LiDar instead
  • I would be more likely to buy a set from Apple due to closer software integrations (or an android phone company)

2/8 ideas incorporated solar. I think Anker chose these on purpose. They are probably working on a wider range of solar products.

1 Like

all ideas are fantastic! :clap::clap::clap:

All great ideas and congrats to @Momo_Bobo @Tank @ktkundy @chrisjwaggoner

The one idea i think which may happen soon is the laptop Cooling Pad and hubā€¦Anker is focusing more on work from home products and this is something many (including me) are interested.

But the price will be out of reach for most of us, starting at $249.99 ~$299 and discounts of $25~$30 :tired_face:

3 Likes

I have worked from home for many years, so this does feel more the world changing to be like me more than the usual of I must change to the fit the world.

The core issue of WFH is noise isolation, being able to let only your own voice be transmitted out and only the callā€™s audio to get to you, and not the other sounds.

I solved my WFH many years ago by having a separate physical building, with double-glazing to keep sounds isolated, but many here canā€™t do that.

Stereo headphones / buds know exactly what is your own voice, it that sound which is symmetrically between the ears, so a simple low-cost way to stop other than your voice going out is microphones each side and do not transmit when they are out of time with each other (so sounds either side of your mouth donā€™t get transmitted). If you are not looking at it, the other person cannot hear it.

WFH also will have to make working on a bed more comfortable as desks are usually in home the kitchen table which cease being your office at meal times, sometimes inconveniently during a work session. So yes, lap solutions matter too.

I have used these for years, but they are pretty dumb. Surely better can be invented? Add Qi wireless? Add some ports?

I feel a brainstorming session would help. Between us we have a lot of WFH experiences, and can feedback better, as I know Iā€™ll have part of the answer, another person a different partā€¦

1 Like

I used to have the lapdesk, easy to use while sitting on sofaā€¦ But have not used it for 4 months or soā€¦ Now using Amazon basics portable lapdesk with legs, this instantly converts my table to Sit/Stand Desk, making sure i donā€™t sit 8-10 hours continuously.

1 Like

I would scrap the laptop and fill it with beer and snacks @Shenoy :wink:

2 Likes

h00419021

Like your idea @paulstevenewing Slight variation from my sideā€¦ Coffee Mug warmer :grin:

1 Like

These are good tooā€¦ Many variations of these currently in market, making it easier to work.

Ill give you that @Shenoy :sunglasses:

1 Like

What if Anker made:

  • not a built-in battery but a slot big enough for a big Powercore, like the size of the typical 26800. To keep laptop / phone going for hours if working in garden / away from wall sockets.
  • a Qi pad to put phone down
  • very basic hub
  • in a lap comfy design

Would anyone want that? If not, why not. Build on each others ideas.

Like that idea, all your items plus Laptop Cooling Pad (idea by Ktkundy) built into the lap comfy design

@professor and @ktkundy can take the credits and some royalty :dollar::dollar::dollar: for it :smiley:

This will be like an expensive solution.

May be Anker can open a new brand focused only for Office and Work at Homes :sunglasses:

3 Likes

Would you buy it.

If not, whatā€™s lacking?

1 Like

I would buy it, with the Cooling option and portable / foldable legs as stand :+1:

Ok so if itā€™s cooling then either it must be powered from wall or Powercore, so means itā€™s USB input, powers its own fan and the other aspects.

So a docking station with a fan in a lap comfy design?

2 Likes

yes, this is something I would prefer and buy. :+1:

I donā€™t mind connecting a USB-C PD power input cable to the unit, may be a 6-8ft cable, good enough to transfer upto 65-90W power.

This can be packaged as a Total All in One work from home solution.

2 Likes