Nature: Miniature fuel cells have long been proposed as an alternative to batteries in powering portable devices. In theory, a fuel cell could power a laptop all day or a phone for a week on just a few cubic centimeters of fuel. At least four major companies, Toshiba, Samsung, Sanyo, and Panasonic are researching the technology but despite their investment says Nature’s Kurt Kleiner, it is still unclear whether a commercial consumer product will actually be developed.