The first product will be a 16W standalone power charger that can be used for recharging batteries of handheld devices, such as MP3 players, mobile phones, GPS receivers, PDAs and portable multimedia players, according to Antig. Called Begini (although this name is not yet official), the device may also work as a secondary power source for laptops when they are powered by internal batteries, extending overall battery life. Utilizing 70ml methanol cartridges, the charger provides output voltages from 5V to 17V, having, as one of its features, ability to power electronics devices through the USB interface. The cartridges will presumably be supplied by France-based BIC, but Antig has not yet officially confirmed cartridge suppliers. Without a cartridge, the Begini charger weighs about 800 grams, and its dimensions are 230×70×80mm.

Antig's DMFC solution is based on using printed circuit boards similar to those used by the electronics industry. The DMFC module has a sandwich structure, and a PCB lamination process is utilized for module assembling. It also incorporates, as one of its key elements, membrane electrode assemblies developed by US-based DuPont, with the membranes consisting of a sulfonated tetrafluorethylene copolymer called Nafion. The solution supports SMBus as an interface for system management communications.

Last year at CeBIT, Antig captured a lot of attention by showcasing a prototype "component-like" DMFC module for notebooks. Then - together with Asia Vital Components (AVC), Nanya PCB, Syspotek and three other unnamed companies - Antig formed a working group to develop and promote its DMFC concept called System on Cell (SoC). The group was formally established in September 2005, and it already includes about 20 companies, according to Antig.

As contributors to the working group, Syspotek develops liquid level sensors, controller ICs and energy management system (EMS) components, while Nanya PCB is involved as a PCB supplier.

AVC provides blowers and condensers, and the company will also assemble the Begini chargers for Antig, as well as participating in the promotion of the devices. According to Antig, the first Begini samples were assembled at AVC's facility in Wugu, Taipei County, but later on, the product will likely be moved to mass production in China.

When asked about estimated retail prices for its charger and fuel cartridges, Antig noted that cartridge suppliers are currently aiming for US$5, and the Begini device will definitely be priced under US$5,000 that corresponds to the current price level of a similar product from Germany-based Smart Fuel Cells (SFC), which already has some experience in shipping DMFC devices. SFC also joined the conference in Lungtan, and its founder and supervisory board member Manfred Stefener complimented Antig's efforts to pull the DMFC component vendors together to develop the project. He advised Taiwan companies not to be in a rush to develop the DMFC market. Stefener pointed out in a panel discussion that the DMFC industry has a lot of interesting technologies, but it still lacks markets and applications. The industry's first priority should be to search for those markets and applications, he emphasized, and other panelists supported him saying that no DMFC supplier has yet actually demonstrated a clear way to reach the mass market.

Stefener mentioned that SFC started shipping its products in Germany and the company only served its home market for three years. Based on this experience, he advised Taiwan's DMFC community to explore the local Taiwan market initially too. However, it seems that Antig has a different opinion on this topic since it sees the US and Europe as key markets for the first Begini chargers and future products.