Samsung’s new TV remote charges itself via radio waves from your router

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is always a time for firms to reconfirm their commitment to environmental causes while showcasing their newest, more efficient goods and packaging. After launching a solar-powered Eco Remote for its 2021 TVs, Samsung has released a new version that includes an interesting trick.

This remote, like the previous Eco Remote, can be charged with solar energy, but Samsung has now incorporated RF harvesting capabilities, which allow it to maintain its charge by “collecting routers’ radio waves and converting them to energy.” Neat. This isn’t seen in many electronics, primarily because it’s only useful for low-power devices. Remote controls, on the other hand, come under this category.

Aside from the new RF harvesting option, the Eco Remote may be powered by both outdoor and indoor light, as well as USB-C (for the fastest results). This year, Samsung will release a white version of the remote, which the firm claims will better fit its “lifestyle” TVs like The Frame, Serif, and Sero.

The goal here, like with the original remote, is to remove AAA batteries. Switching to solar-powered remotes, according to Samsung, may save 99 million discarded batteries over the course of seven years. It’s also looked into “harnessing the kinetic energy that’s created when the remote is shaken” and “using the vibrational energy that’s created when the microphone picks up sounds” as possible ways of self-charging the internal battery. This time, though, it decided to include RF harvesting as another method of keeping the clicker operational whenever you need it.