This Smartwatch Doesn't Need To Be Charged – How That's Possible

No matter how advanced our personal devices may become, they still haven't managed to get past a single, insurmountable hurdle: they need power. No matter how fancy modern batteries have become, they're still batteries and still need to draw on steadfast power sources like a wall outlet to juice themselves up. If we could ever completely remove the need for traditional power from our devices, we could very well enter a new technological renaissance. Current devices are nowhere near that point yet, but there are some that are making clever strides in the right direction.

One such example of these strides is the Matrix PowerWatch. This sports watch may seem like an ordinary, nifty-looking timepiece for the athletically-minded, but it conceals a fascinating secret: it never has to be charged. How is such a thing even possible, at least without futuristic technology or witchcraft? As it turns out, the answer is surprisingly mundane.

When Matrix originally launched its crowdfunding campaign for the PowerWatch in 2017, the tagline was "Powered by You." That's not a bit of clever marketing jargon but a literal claim: the PowerWatch receives power from your body heat.

Specifically, the PowerWatch generates electricity from the temperature differential between your internally generated body heat and the ambient moisture in the air. Basically, cool air plus a warm body equals electricity, enough electricity to power the watch and its functions.

As long as the watch's wearer is generating heat and it's relatively cool out, the battery can recharge itself effectively endlessly. The only time the power drains out is if you take the PowerWatch off, though the device's current version, the PowerWatch 2, does come with a thermal charging pad if you need to quickly juice it up before putting it on. The PowerWatch 2 also has a built-in solar power collector just to secure a little extra energy while you're out and about.

So, we have a watch that can power itself more or less endlessly. Surely, this is the herald of a completely energy-independent future, right? Unfortunately, that's not quite the case.

While the PowerWatch's battery system is fascinating, it's more of a novelty than a major advancement, at least for the moment. For one thing, while the energy generated from the temperature differential is enough to power the watch's basic functions like its display, GPS tracker, and heart rate monitor, it can't generate enough energy to perform any fancier functions like you'd find on an Apple Watch, for example. It's actually recommended that you don't run the GPS tracker for more than 30 minutes a day because it drains the battery faster than it can charge.

Additionally, the PowerWatch is intended primarily for those living an active lifestyle. To create an ideal charging situation, you need to be in an active state to get your skin warmed up and in a relatively cool environment, no higher than 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If it's too hot out or you're not generating heat yourself, there's no temperature differential and no power.

While it's not a true free energy solution, the PowerWatch is an interesting step toward that future we want, and perhaps one day, it could reach that future in earnest. It needs to evolve past its specific market niche of fitness enthusiasts who live in cool places.