Most handheld gaming devices are powered by batteries. But a new device, called ENGAGE, uses something else for power: renewable energy, which can’t be used up!
ENGAGE is powered in two ways. Solar panels on the front of the device collect sunlight and turn it into electricity. ENGAGE can also turn mechanical energy, produced by pressing the device’s buttons as you play, into an electrical charge.
For now, ENGAGE isn’t for sale. But developers hope to use its technology to design more environmentally friendly gaming devices in the future. That would help reduce electronic waste like used-up batteries, says Josiah Hester. He’s a computer scientist at Northwestern University who helped design ENGAGE.