Tired of tangled cords visible in your home or office?
Top selling Swedish furniture company, Ikea, has announced they will be building charging stations right into their furniture. You will be able to set your phone down in a convenient location and charge it wirelessly.
This will be perfect for people who want to reduce clutter in their home or office. The charging pads will be built into bedside tables, desks, and lamps to start. They’re hoping the roll out of this furniture line will be ready to go by April of this year.
Ikea will also be selling wireless charging kits that will fit into existing furniture. If assembling Ikea furniture is your favorite pastime, you can self-assemble your own wireless charger into your furniture too. They promise it will be a “quick and simple task.” Just a few screws, right? Heh.
How this fancy schmancy stuff works
Ikea will be using Qi technology with their new furniture line, a power standard compatible with the largest portion of wireless devices. If you have an iPhone, which uses Duracell’s Powermat technology, you’ll have to purchase a case or back panel for your phone to use on Ikea’s charging pads. Also, if your phone doesn’t have wireless charging at all, you’ll have to get the case.
Jeanette Skjelmose, corporate manager at Ikea released this statement, “Through research and home visits, we know that people hate cable mess. They worry about not finding the charger and running out of power. Our new innovation solutions, which integrate wireless charging into home furnishings, will make life at home simpler.”
Nothing new about charging pads, but…
Charging pads have been around for a while in hotels and airports. Starbucks even has Duracell’s Powermat on tables in select locations. Businesses are always trying to find new ways to excite their customers, so you have to wonder if this innovative technology will catch on in places like waiting rooms, on dining tables in restaurants, and your desk at work.
The Ikea furniture with charging pads will be not be breaking the bank either, coming in at approximately $20 higher. Ikea is already pretty affordable so this increase per item is reasonable for this technology. I don’t know about you but I’m ready to say goodbye to my phone charger cord.
