【Deborah Driggs Archives】

No offense to Apple,Deborah Driggs Archives but the MacBook Pro's Touch Bar hasn't exactly been the game-changer we thought it would be last fall. Most people would agree that it's a gimmick.

But you know what's totally not gimmicky? A laptop with built-in wireless charging.

Dell's new Latitude 7285 is billed as the world's first laptop capable of charging without cables.

SEE ALSO: The world's first glasses-free holographic phone is coming, and it's not from Apple

Announced at CES in January, the admittedly basic-looking 2-in-1 Windows 10 laptop is finally shipping, which means you can now live in the future you've always dreamed of -- one where you'll never have to worry about tripping over a charging cable hanging off one side of your laptop.

The 7285 starts at $1,200 and comes with some decent specs, including an Intel Core i5-7Y54 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of SSD storage.

The 12.3-inch touchscreen tablet half comes with an crisp 2,880 x 1,920 resolution. You'll also find a Windows Hello-ready camera on the front, which'll let you sign into the computer using your face.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

And unlike Apple's MacBook, this Dell comes with two Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports, microSD card slot, SIM card slot, and a headphone jack.

These are all fine, but what about the wireless charging? Well, it's like wireless charging on phones like the Galaxy S8, meaning you need to place it on a wireless charging mat.

Dell says it partnered up with WiTricity to include its "magnetic resonance wireless charging technology" to wirelessly deliver the 30-watts of power required to sufficiently charge up the laptop.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

It's impressive! But, now for some bad news. The $1,200 starting price doesn't include the wireless charging keyboard or charging mat. You'll need to purchase them separately for $380 and $200, respectively, which totals up to $580 just for wireless charging. Dell's got a bundle that includes both accessories and saves you $30, but it's still $550 after final check-out.

Final total comes out to $1,750 (before taxes) to live without charging cables. Is it worth it? Not for me (especially with such a boring design), but maybe for you... if you're rich.

In the near future all our devices will hopefully charge wirelessly. We'll look back at these primitive days of plugging cables into outlets and battery packs and just laugh and roll our eyes.

We're still a ways off from a truly wireless future, but we're getting there. Phones have wireless charging and this year's "iPhone 8," which is rumored to come with built-in wireless charging, could make it ubiquitous in a few years.

---

Featured Video For You

---

Charge your phone wirelessly from anywhere with this handy gadget

---

Topics Dell Windows

(Editor: {typename type="name"/})