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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: June 13th, 2023

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  • People joke about this all the time, and I here the sarcasm in your comment, but technology has come far since the iphone 6 or 7.

    Most high end phones have wireless charging build it. Between the receiver coil and the rest of the phone is a thin sheet of ferrite material to prevent the electromagnetic field from getting to the sensitive electronics. Battery technology has also improved a lot, so much that even relatively cheap phones like the Realme GT Neo 5 charge at 150W!

    From the technical perspective the limit is the cable and connector, because there would be too much losses that heat up the cable to dangerous levels and rapidly degrade the contact area in the connectors. Manufacturers don’t want to deal with this security risk, not the increased RMA rates within the mandated guarantee period, so they artificially limit the charging rate.

    Thing is: You absolutely can charge at higher speeds if you bypass the cable altogether! A microwave outputs usually somewhere between 150W-1000W, so stick to the lower end to be on the safe side. The screen of the phone must face down, because the charging coil is placed on the back. You also must prevent overcharging by setting the timer correctly: If your phone battery has 15Wh capacity, and you are charging with 150W, you must at most charge for 1/10 of an hour, or 6 minutes (less if you are just topping up your phone).

    One final note: fast charging does put increased wear on the battery, so I only recommend to use it when you need it, for example when you need to make a flight and are already running late.


  • I am aware of the basic arguments behind inflation/deflation, and neither is good in excess.

    Typically central banks targets inflation of 2% these days, but we all know the real inflation for necessities is far higher (>4%). Inflation disproportionately affects the poorer - rich people have the fast majority of their wealth “stored” in stocks or real estate, which rise in valuation as people rush into these markets to protect the little they have. I’d argue that inflation rates are artificially pushed far higher then is sustainable, simply because those who decide are the same people who benefit the most.

    I consider a low but predictable inflation rate about 1% ideal (0-2% is acceptable short term variation) for the following reasons:

    • No one has to worry about debasing/devaluing your currency by injecting more supply.
    • Nobody “passively” gains wealth by sitting on it.
    • If you want to keep your wealth, you have to take some risk and use it.
    • Inflation rate is not so high, that you need super high risk investments to keep up, making it more accessible to small players.
    • Large player can not as easily game the market by skimming of value from the lower to upper middle class.

    Yes, this idea is not without risks. But the way I see it the forced “we have to improve value by 2% every year” exponential grow can only go on so long before we (humanity) hit the finite limits of this planet.