In 1892, Nikola Tesla demonstrated the feasibility of the wireless transmission of electricity. Within 10 years, he'd built a giant tower on Long Island, New York, with the aim of transmitting free power to the world. The project was never completed - his main backer, one JP Morgan, could not see any financial benefit in supplying energy gratis to the public.

Now, however, the prospect of wireless (if not free) electricity is once again upon us. At the TEDGlobal conference in July, Eric Giler, founder of WiTricity, demonstrated the route to a cable-free world.

The technology, developed at MIT (and different to Tesla's, which may have had safety issues) uses an adapter that plugs into a regular power socket and transmits power by means of a harmless magnetic field to any device within a few metres fitted with appropriate capture components.

Giler is confident the technology will be available for deployment in manufacturers' own equipment by the end of 2010.