Bluetooth keyboard: ten years without changing batteries

Broadcom has developed a reference design (circuit, design and wiring of the board) for the BCM20730 chip , which promises unprecedented energy efficiency. Some of the Bluetooth gadgets will be able to work without replacing the batteries during the entire life cycle. According to the company , two AA batteries will be enough for a regular wireless keyboard for ten years.

It's not just about keyboards. Indeed, with low power consumption of the chipset, the production of Bluetooth devices without batteries at all will become more affordable - these are very necessary for biological implants, wearable electronics, portable sensors that can be powered by renewable energy sources in the environment.

Ten years of battery life is not a fantasy at all. Modern lithium AA batteries with a low level of self-discharge in the D / U remote, an alarm clock or a wireless keyboard can work for up to ten years, or even more. Another thing is to reduce power consumption so that the device is powered from a circuit that converts the kinetic energy of keystrokes, or from a similar low-power source. That would be a completely different level. Whether Broadcom succeeded or not is difficult to say now.

By the way, there are wireless keyboards on the market that work forever on solar panels and even with a built-in luxometer that transfers the level of illumination in the program to the program (it’s very convenient to use it for testing lighting devices and other photometry) - though, such devices are still expensive about $ 55-60.

The BCM20730 chip with support for Bluetooth 1.1-4.0 standards went into production a few months ago, the Chinese managed to make ready-made modules for mice and keyboards.



The BCM20730 is also used , for example, in the remote control for the Roku 2 XS wireless set-top box.


^{Remote control for Roku 2 XS wireless set-top box}

All this is done on the old reference design. Broadcom reports that the new design has just been sent to partners and peripheral manufacturers.