MTI MicroFuel Cells, a provider of Mobion off-the-grid portable power solutions, has joined hands with Neosolar to develop Mobion fuel cell technology. Neosolar, a provider of portable digital devices, will use this technology into its future models of portable devices, including ultra mobile portable computers (UMPCs).
Both the companies will develop, test and evaluate Mobion prototypes for their integration with a number of Neosolar products. It could lead to the use of external Mobion power sources like chargers, snap-on attachments and embedded Mobion power sources.
Commenting on this partnership, James Y. Yu, president of NeoSolar, said, "We want to incorporate the best technologies available into our products, and provide our customers with the most advanced features and cutting-edge functionality. This co-development agreement with MTI Micro will give us the opportunity to provide fuel cell technology with incredible benefits that may allow us to bring a new class of digital products to consumers."
According to the company communique, UMPCs are much smaller than traditional portable notebook computers with enough processor strength to support a full operating system with complete browsing, communication, video and gaming capabilities in a compact package. According to Frost and Sullivan, the annual portable power market for UMPCs is projected to cross the half billion dollar mark in 2010.
Adding more to it, Peng Lim, chairman and CEO of MTI, said, "Working with Neosolar gives us access to a new segment of the consumer electronics market. Neosolar's UMPCs are well-suited for a new power source that can take them to the next step in their product evolution. This announcement is also an important step for MTI Micro toward our goal of becoming a leading provider of portable power for handheld electronic devices." MTI Micro recently opened a representative office in China, and entered into agreements with representatives in both Korea and Japan.