1. Older Rechargeables Diminish Mobility

Every notebook PC, mobile phone, and PDA user is already familiar with the phenomenon: as soon as a rechargeable battery in a mobile device gets a bit more than a year old, it starts to lose its capacity. This means that the older the battery gets, the shorter the length of time it hold its charge. If a brand-new notebook with a fresh rechargeable battery runs for two to three hours, it's entirely likely that in two years the same battery won't run for much more than an hour. Anyone wants to use that notebook as a truly mobile PC - which is to say, outside a one-hour radius of an electrical outlet - will have to pony up for an expensive new rechargeable battery to replace the tired old one.

This well-known aging effect may be near its end - at least, if one is inclined to believe the claims made by Batterylife AG . Their magic potion, named Batterylife Activator, is a product intended to give rechargeable batteries a new lease on life. Using the Batterylife Activator foil is simple: merely cover 80 percent or more of one surface of the battery with foil wrap, then reinsert the battery into its receptacle. After around 10 recharge cycles, the battery is supposed to deliver noticeably longer life, and also last longer than it otherwise would before requiring replacement.

Comparing the product's price, at "only" $50 for a piece of foil with dimensions of 4x6" (10 cm x 15 cm) to the cost of a new rechargeable battery, it's clear that this is just a fraction of what one would have to spend for a replacement. That assumes, of course, that a single piece is enough to cover 80% of one side as prescribed .

Let's be clear about this: at first glance this sounds more like voodoo than high technology. But that didn't stop us from putting the vendor's claims to the test; read on to learn about our results.