The Twitch streamer UWOSLAB conducted a crazy experiment. To power a handheld console without batteries, he used the energy from a chili dish.
Small handheld consoles with an LCD screen do not require much energy. Usually, just a few batteries provide enough voltage to use such devices.
A streamer has now shown on Twitch in a live experiment that a handheld with a Sonic game can also be powered through another method with enough energy.
For this, he used several cups with a chili dish as an electrochemical energy source and connected them to the mobile gaming console to be able to play the Sonic title installed on it.
However, the generated electricity would probably not be enough for a specific gaming console, that a single tinkerer developed himself.
Handheld console powered by chili
What did the streamer do? The DIY enthusiast UWOSLAB, who calls himself a “mad scientist,” conducted a curious scientific experiment on his Twitch channel.
In his attempt, it was about powering a handheld gaming console without conventional batteries. For this purpose, he prepared a chili dish that generated enough electricity to power the handheld with the game “Sonic The Hedgehog 3” on it.
How did he proceed? Initially, the streamer removed the two AA batteries, each with a voltage of 1.5 volts, from the console. He then tested the device with a loosely wired 3V button cell.
After that, he set about preparing the chili and filling it into a cup. Fortunately, the hobby cook did not use the help of an immoral AI for the recipe.
To connect the chili dish with the handheld console, he made several electrodes from a copper tube and a zinc strip. The tinkerer then wired the console to the electrodes in the chili-vinegar mixture, which he had meanwhile distributed into several cups.
Why does this work? Using a digital multimeter, UWOSLAB checked the electricity generated for the operation of the mobile console. To produce enough voltage, he needed a total of 8 cups of the chili preparation.
When asked how the experiment can be explained scientifically, UWOSLAB gave the following answer on X:
A basic voltaic cell consists of a copper and zinc electrode in a salt-vinegar mixture. The chili is both salty and acidic, meaning we can use it like a voltaic cell.
UWOSLAB via X
For a better understanding: “A voltaic cell is an electrochemical device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy.” On the page polaridad.es you can find a detailed explanation of this.
Without Nintendo as the manufacturer of video games and consoles, the Twitch scientist may not have been able to conduct his crazy experiment at all. The Japanese company developed the first handheld console in video game history: We owe Nintendo’s handheld consoles to a boring train ride with a calculator
