In general searching for new uses and insights for existing technologies takes a lot of effort. Once a product is formed, built, tested and sold most of the cool features are usually well defined leaving nothing new to really be done. This leaves the searcher with a lot of work to squeeze out something that makes you go ‘WOW’ about the new feature. There are those rare ‘Isaac Newton and a Apple’ moments where you tilt your head just right and see something new. While this won’t earn me any additional patents or launch a thousands salesmen into action, I’m still rather proud of this little discovery.
To set the scene:
I was writing the Adventures in Data Movement blog article. Going thru all the steps needed in the data movement section. Content in my chaotic glory, staring at the iConnect, wires, storage and network components. My phone beeps announcing ‘FEED ME’ I need a charge. Normally I would never notice this. I have the general rule, when I get home the blasted phone goes on the charger and unless I leave the house I forget about its existence. I cant even remember why I had it upstairs at the time with me to have even noticed that it was hungry.
Sorry I digress back to the inspirational whack on the forehead. I have the phone beeping asking to be fed, looking at the iConnect the following thoughts run through mind.
- The iConnect has a USB hub right? - Yes
- My cell phone can charge via a USB connection – Yes
- I wondered if the iConnect has a powered USB hub – Not Sure
That was all I needed to go off in a creative tangent with a crazy idea forming in my head. I run down stairs to steal a USB cable off the charging station in the kitchen. At this point my wife notices me looking around the various phone chargers on the shelf. Having learned over the years to take notice when that ‘look’ appears on my face. It’s generally a indication that I’m about to try something ‘creative’. I explain that I think I can charge my cell phone on my iConnect. To which she makes sure I wont break anything the family can’t do with out and wishes me luck. Taking USB cable in hand I head back upstairs where I can carry out my newest fiendish plot.
Sitting back down I connect the USB cable, phone and iConnect and to my delight I see the phone goes to charging mode. It appear that the iConnect is indeed a powered hub and it works great as an phone charger. I leave the phone charging until the following day. As part of my civic duty I must report that both cell phone and iConnect are still alive and well to this date.
Quoting The Talking Head’s ‘You may ask yourself, well, how did I get here’
The answer is all about taking a chance and following a hunch that resulted in something new and different. For the price of about 85 bucks I now have a wireless data transfer device, NAS Server,Media Server and Cell Phone charger. That's not bad value for the buck.
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