As car manufacturers continue to battle in the electric car race, a few have started wondering, where will the batteries go once they have reached the end of their automotive useful life? Simply disposing of the batteries in some type of landfill will not help the environment and will most certainly not appeal to either car manufacturers or customers. To address this concern, several big car manufacturers in the electric car race have teamed up with companies knowledgeable about electricity and energy to plan ways to recycle and reuse outdated electric car batteries and their energy.General Motors has announced it will collaborate with the Swiss company ABB, a leader in power and automation technologies and the world’s largest supplier of power grid systems, to devise a plan for re-using batteries from the Chevrolet Volt. The companies will develop several pilot projects and examine the Volt’s 16-kWh lithium-ion batteries to see how the second-life car batteries can be used to provide electric grid storage systems. During the pilot projects the companies will study renewable energy storage, grid load management, back-up power supplies for communities, and time of use management.According to GM Executive Director of Electrical Systems, Micky Bly, ‘Volt’s battery will have significant capacity to store electrical energy, even after its automotive life.’ This means that after the eight year or 100,000 mile warranty offered on the Volt, the battery will still have energy that can be used for other purposes if the car battery is recycled. Thus, GM’s ultimate goal through its ABB partnership is to find a cost-effective solution that will optimize the full lifecycle of the battery and will improve the efficiency of the country’s electrical grid.Another car manufacturer that has begun studying electric battery recycling possibilities is Nissan. Nissan has entered into a joint venture with Sumitomo Corporation to conduct research on used lithium-ion batteries. The joint venture, called 4R Energy, has a purpose to ‘Reuse, Resell, Refabricate, and Recycle’ the electric batteries that power the Nissan Leaf.The company is expected to conduct demonstration tests and undertake a commercialization study as it works towards developing a business for second-life use of lithium-ion batteries.Lastly, the California electric car maker Tesla Motors, has entered into a research project with SolarCity, a national leader in solar design and installation, and the University of California, Berkley to investigate outdated electric car battery possibilities. The trio is developing a system that will combine Tesla’s electric car battery system with SolarCity’s monitoring platform to produce an advanced grid-interactive photovoltaic (PV) and stationary storage product which will be able to be installed in buildings. The idea is the battery storage created will collect excess PV power that the utility can use rather than using power plants with larger emissions.So, as the electric car race rages on, it looks as if General Motors, Nissan, and Tesla Motors will all be competing in the electric car battery race as well. With such big ideas as storage for renewable energy, smart grids, and providing back-up power for buildings, who knows where the second-lives of electric car batteries will end up.

The innovations in technology, has enabled us to facilitate our amusements needs. Today people rarely get time to entertain themselves. They suffer from stress and hardly get time for recreational activities. Outdoor games no longer seem to be the part of our daily routine. People engage themselves in their mobile phones or other such electronic devices for refreshment. As such the electronic gaming devices come to drive all our gaming concerns.There are various game consoles that usually keeps hitting the market at regular intervals. These consoles are affordable and have various user friendly features. The Nintendo Wii gaming console has succeeded to attract the attention of the game lovers. The 512 MB memory is embedded in this device, which can further be extended by the gamers to suit their needs. This gaming gadget has an incorporated controller that has the capability to sense the special motions. This exciting feature sustains the thrill and entertainment of the incorporated games.The electronic games get more preference by the kids these days. The electronic games are very interactive and enable the gamers to develop their skills and knowledge. The most fascinating thing regarding these electronic games, is their animations and graphics. These graphics and animations enthrall the gamers throughout the gaming process. The interactive feature of these gaming devices can attract both the kids and the grown ups. The Nintendo Wii is very light weight and comes in smooth and attractive design. The Wii mote is used to play and operate the games that are integrated in the device. However the gamers can purchase additional games also, whenever they desire. This unique gadget has the user manuals and does not require much time to get started. The user manuals would assist the gamers to operate the gaming machine without any hassle. To play the Wii games the gamer has to participate physically due to their so called motion sensor technology. The Wii mote can be used as a tennis racket, while playing the game of tennis. As such the gamers can select their favorite games such as racing, boxing etc and keep on entertaining themselves.The gamers can even browse the Nintendo’s website by using (WiFi) or ethernet. Visiting those sites would enable the gamers to download their favorite and preferred games in their Wii within few minutes. The Virtual console feature would further facilitate the game lovers to access the backward capability and enjoy the Super Nintendo games, Turbogrfx etc. Experienced gamers also like to play games in this gaming gadget. With the popularity of the electronic games, various top leading companies have endeavored into this arena. The earnest attempts of those top leading players are reflecting. Nowadays the electronic gaming consoles have flooded in the market. All these gaming devices have some unique features, to attract the potential consumers. It depends on the users to select the appropriate device that would surely suit all their requirements. However there are online shopping stores that would further facilitate the consumers to narrow down their search options. These websites display various high end gadgets on their portal, along with lucrative deals and offers. Browse them to avail your preferred gaming gadget and favorite games too.The various advantages of this gaming gadget makes it worth buying. Multiple players can enjoy a particular game simultaneously. This gadget can be carried anywhere without any hindrance. Further this device can be easily connected to the internet. This gadget is prepared to offer tough competition to its competitors such as Xbox, Sony PlayStation etc. The games can be played both by a casual gamer as well as an experienced player. The multimedia features would allow the gamers to enjoy their favorite music tracks anytime and anywhere. Again when this gadget is connected to the internet, weather forecasts, latest news updates, latest music tracks can easily be accessed. The latest pc games are also regularly updated in the web sites to lure and attract the customers. Avail those adventurous and exciting games to have best gaming experience.