Intel’s wireless charging bowl will be released by the end of the year

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich told the crowd during his closing keynote at MakerCon in New York on Thursday that the wireless charging bowl he showed off at CES 2014 would be hitting the market by the end of the year. Krzanich said that the simple bowl, which seemed like another of the many wacky innovations seen at CES that never make it to market, was the item that drew the largest reaction from the conference. He also shared the smart charging bowl’s less than glamorous journey from concept to production, joking that a team simply bought a cheap bowl at Walmart that they then wired up. When it worked surprisingly well, they bought a slightly better bowl from Target and tried again. Eventually a custom bowl was designed that will go on sale soon. The revelation that the wireless charging bowl lives comes on the heels of another Intel announcement that the chip maker’s hardware will be at the center of the Mica, a new smart bracelet sold in partnership with fashion retailer Opening Ceremony. Krzanich said that the inspiration for the smart bowl came from a team member who would throw her jewelry in a bowl at the end of the day. Clearly, smart jewelry deserves a smart bowl in Krzanich’s estimation.