Of all the novel ways to keep a mobile device charged and operating, French mobile operator Orange has devised one of the most unusual yet. Its prototype Sound Charge T-shirt, introduced at England’s Glastonbury Music Festival in June, is designed to turn ambient noise into energy, which can be used to charge a handset, MP3 player or other mobile device. The shirt is made from a special fabric that compresses interwoven quartz crystals. (Don’t ask.) The company claims that the crystals generate energy that’s stored in an attached battery, from which the devices get their charge.
The Sound Charge shirt isn’t yet available for sale.