Samsung might have the solution. You can smash your remote to the table with the Samsung Galaxy S5 to extract the remaining power.
Ahead of CES 2022 in Las Vegas, the tech giant has unveiled a new TV remote, called Eco Remote, that harvests radio waves from nearby home routers as its energy source.
You can also charge the battery using solar panels at the back.
Samsung has announced its brand new Eco Remote that will be available with 2022 TVs in white or black.
Samsung’s Eco Remote uses nearby home routers for radio waves as an energy source. Right: The backside of the remote shows the solar panels
Samsung announced that its Eco Remote will come with every TV it releases in 2022. It is completely battery-free.
The Korean company is on a quest to become more environmentally-friendly, starting with eliminating batteries entirely from remotes for its smart TVs.
Eco Remote, according to the company, will prevent 99,000,000 batteries from going to waste over the next seven years.
At CES last year, Samsung revealed a solar powered version of the Eco Remote, but this new version for 2022 has the ability to harvest radio waves too.
According to the company, this gives users another charging option in case there isn’t enough sunlight for solar charging.
Samsung stated that the battery is fully charged regardless of whether it is bright and sunny or dark at night. It does this by collecting radio waves from routers and then converting them into energy.
New remotes include a receiving antenna’ which captures radio waves from up to 140 feet (40m) distant routers.
Radio frequency harvesting (RF) is a technology that’s already in use for implantable electronic devices and ID tags.
The Eco Remote is made from recycled materials and has shortcuts for Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and Samsung TV Plus
The only way to use RF harvesting in low-power devices is with TV remotes.
Eco Remote may be compatible with all routers that emit electromagnetic waves (wired and wireless).
The multiple radio waves flowing through our homes and offices today could power it. This would allow us to use modern smart technology such as 4G, 5G, GPS, and Bluetooth.
According to Samsung, the new Eco Remote was also created with recycled materials such as plastic bottles.
Promo images show it also has shortcuts for streaming services Netflix, Disney + and Amazon Prime Video, as well as Samsung TV Plus, the company’s own ad-supported streaming platform.
Samsung will likely display the new device at CES 2022 in Las Vegas.
Coronavirus cases across the US have caused the Consumer Electronics Show to close a day before the normal four-day period. The CES will now be closing a mere three days early
CES 2022 will begin on Wednesday January 5th and will feature a variety of global tech company representatives.
After going online last year because of coronavirus and CES 2010, CES 2010 will now be held in person. However, many big-name companies won’t make in-person appearances this year due to Omicron.
Several large companies, such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft have pulled out from the event in person, so it might not be the big comeback CES had hoped.