New Gizmo Lets You Charge Your Cell Phone By Dancing

This may not be so much a case of ‘what will they think of next’ as ‘why did they think of this at all?’

A mobile phone operator in Britain has come up with a solution to those annoying moments when the battery suddenly dies in your handset and you’re not close to any electrical outlet to charge it.

They’re testing a portable device that can instantly charge your cell without any AC or DC at all. The power source: you. But you have to agree to look like an idiot to make it work. It only functions if you dance.

Yes, dance.

The kinetic energy charger is attached to your arm, and uses a system of weights and magnets to generate an electric current that tops up a storage battery, which can then be used to power the phone. The special device is about the size and weight of a regular handset and is just one more thing you’ve got to lug around in your purse or pocket.

Portable power supplies are nothing new, of course, but the dance gimmick definitely is. Why go that ridiculous route? “We wanted to create a fun, engaging and interactive product which would encourage users to have a laugh while charging their mobile phone and at the same time test out a new energy-efficient prototype,” explains Hattie Magee of Orange UK.

The prototype will be getting its first big workout at an outdoor concert in the country this weekend. But if the show is bad, you may not want to phone home about it. And if there’s nothing to dance to, you may not be able to.

Photo courtesy: Orange UK

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