Oncore six-bay charger

Oncore Power Systems is introducing a six-bay battery charger for iBooks and MacBooks targeted at the education market. The company is also selling a "power upgrade kit" consisting of the new charger and six replacement batteries. The company says the products are designed to "give new life" to older classroom computers. The unit has built-in safety circuitry and LED status lights for each bay.

The Oncore charger analyzes the health of each battery before beginning a charge cycle. The unit measures 11 X 7 inches and can recharge six empty MacBook batteries in less than 8 hours, the company said. The charger is designed with "three sets consisting of two charging bays." Each pair of bays will charge one battery at a time, so the unit charges three of the six batteries at once. Charging begins first on the left bay of each set, then shifts to the right bay.

The charger works with MacBook, 12-inch iBook Dual USB and G4 models and 14-inch iBooks. The Oncore 6-Bay Charger costs $400 (without replacement batteries), and is available now at a variety of retailers.

by MacNN Staff