Interesting, but if you read a bit further you discover that the 12 Whrs of power that one filled cartridge supplies is equal to around 4 AA NiMH batteries fully charged. (the 1000 AA battery reference in the article refers to the total life of the cartidge including all refills, sort of like the fact that a rechargeable NiMH battery is good for 1000 charge cycles) You would then need to recharge your cartridge or slap in a charged one. For now, it's just a lot cheaper and easier to use rechargeable NiMH batteries -- at about $2 each they are kinda hard to beat.