Official News - page 7

REAL LIFE NEWS: PHONE CHARGING WINDMILLS AT MUSIC FESTIVAL

by Hazed

Phone-users at Glastonbury festival later this month, traditionally the muddiest music venue in the UK's festival calendar, will have a new way to charge up their mobile phones by using renewable energy. The phone company Orange has launched a prototype wind-powered charger which is capable of delivering a constant supply of energy even if the wind isn't reliable.

The wind turbine charges up a battery, and then mobile phones can be recharged from that power pack. Yes, it's based on one of humanity's oldest power-producing devices: a windmill. This prototype weighs just 150g and is compact enough to be tucked into a rucksack.

The idea is that you plant it next to your tent - or perhaps attach it to the top - and head off to enjoy the day's music. When you stagger back for the night, you can plug your run-down mobile in so you're ready to go next morning.

Oh, and one more thing: given the name of the phone company, as you would expect, the windmill is bright orange!

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