This white paper reviews several significant recent trends in the battery industry. While the Lithium-ion (Li-ion) market is quickly overtaking other rechargeable battery technologies, in popularity, there have been a few additions to the selection of Li-ion batteries available. Most noteworthy are: the replacement of Cobalt-based cathodes with alternatives; the availability of high current cells to the general market; and the rapid adoption of Lithium polymer cells. After an overview of the basics of pack and cell construction and chemistry including choices and trade-offs, this paper will review recent innovations in cells and what these innovations mean to designers of portable and mobile devices.