Motorola so had this down pat last year, but we suppose O2 is just showcasing its pedal-powered charging system now that such devices are all the rage. Just days after we had a look at two unorthodox chargers from Orange, along comes rival O2 with a bicycle-related alternative. Reportedly, the eco-friendly device will be demonstrated at the O2 Wireless Festival in London's Hyde Park, but unfortunately, each of the demo bikes will be stationary. Still no word on whether O2 has a mind to take this thing commercial, but for cyclists the world over, here's to hoping it does.

[Thanks, Adam]

For those fortunate enough to be planning a trip to this year's Glastonbury, you can rest assured that forgetting your mobile charger won't be the worst thing that could possibly happen. Reportedly, Orange will erect a seven-meter high recharge Pod tent in which patrons can stop by and reinvigorate their winded handset. Said tent will boast 500-watt solar panels and a 500-watt wind turbine in order to generate electricity for the lifeless phones, and Orange is hoping to juice up 100 devices per hour. If only such conveniences were everywhere...

[Thanks, Adam]

Oh sure, there's a plethora of portable USB chargers out there to keep most every cellphone around juiced up for one last call, but those handling a Palm handset with the polarizing Multi-Connector have long been shut out cold -- until now. Tech Center Labs has just come to the rescue with its Tiny Emergency FuelCell, which holds a single AA and enables power to be passed along to Centros and any other Palm / Treo device with the proprietary connector. Best of all, the pocket-friendly device is just $9.95 (or $10.95 with a bundled battery). Not a bad way to spend a Hamilton if you're a Palm lover.

[Via Palm InfoCenter]

Sure, there are already a handful of options out there for extending the life of your iPhone / iPod battery, but since when have we been ones to gripe about a little competition? Kensington has just introduced a standard and miniature version of its Battery Pack and Charger for iPhone / iPod, which unsurprisingly provides juice to your device's internal battery and can be recharged simultaneously. As you could likely guess, the only differences between the two contraptions are the size, price and battery life; the 0.22-pound standard model extends play time to up to 100 hours (music) / 6 hours (talk), while the even tinier mini version livens things up for another 30 hours (music) / 3 hours (talk). Each is available now for $69.99 / $49.99.

Every so often you get to play with a device you haven't used before and suddenly wonder how you ever got by before you had one. The QuadCharge from Gomadic is such a creature and after our extended play date with it -- by play, of course we mean left in place charging stuff -- we can't live without. Click on through the continue link for our thoughts and more pics.

Working Assets, an MVNO on Sprint's network, makes a habit of supporting a handful of causes by donating 1 percent of subscribers' charges to "progressive nonprofits" -- but how's about doing some good of its own? Customers and potential customers can now scoop up this cool looking "Solio" solar charger for free when purchased with an LG 150 flip for $69 on contract. The charger accepts power from either a wall outlet or that big, glowing thing in the sky, ready to dispense juice to the LG in your pocket at a moment's notice. Working Assets claims the Solio weighs in at a $100 value, so we figure $0 ain't a bad deal; sure, the 150 isn't the coolest phone in the world, but we figure that little indiscretion is more than made up with the badass charger.

[Via RCR Wireless News]

It seems Ben Jandrell -- the brains behind Orange's recent wind powered charger -- is considering launching the little orange-colored charger if interest is there for his product. Ben was commissioned to build three prototypes for Orange which were subsequently shown off at the Glastonbury festival. The yet unnamed contraption -- though we're feeling "The Engadget Mobile Charger" rings nicely -- generates about a half-watt of power, enough to trickle charge the batteries you eventually tap into to juice up your mobile. If you are inspired to show yer green (both types) for this type of technology, hit up Ben's site and leave your contact info.

Judging solely by the shots available, it's not hard to agree with the sect that firmly believes Apple's first-party iPhone dock won't reserve a charging spot for its Bluetooth headset. But hey, that's what Chinese knockoffs are for, right? A full seven days before the iPhone's launch, 4Ustuff purportedly has an iPhone USB cradle for sale that undoubtedly provides the means to dock / charge your BT earpiece. Whether or not it'll actually work with Apple's products (or ship, for that matter), remains to be seen.

[Via Pocket-Lint]

This certainly isn't the first product we've seen from legendary designer Luigi Colani. This time however, we've got the AnyFix which Colani calls the "world's first universal mobile phone charger" -- "universal" as in compatible with 80% of the phones on the European market; "world's first" (there are others) as in the world's first charger shaped like a Dytiscus Marginalis insect. Just dial-up the appropriate adapter and insert your phone into the waiting arms of the great diving beetle. Then, presumably, the AnyFix will scan and charge your phone at the appropriate power level for your phone's battery. Details are still a bit scant here but it'lll be on display at CeBIT later this week where we hope to get up close and personal with the man and his mustache charger.

Although most modern phones can go quite a few hours sans an AC outlet, we understand the need for juice in unexpected emergencies, and while the solar-powered charger does a fair job at high noon, you'll probably need a different approach come nightfall. Tackling two issues in one fell swoop is the cellphone-charging flashlight mod, which not only provides a beacon of light for those dim excursions, but also offers up hand crank recharging abilities for your fading mobile. Of course, hacking your flashlight to pull double duty as a manually powered charger is a bit more complex than just picking up a hamster or bicycle-powered option, but you've got to admit, crafting a makeshift charger with spliced cables and a soldering iron is totally MacGyver-approved. So if you're interested in giving yourself (and your handset) a bit longer life when robotic overlords eventually invade our domiciles, be sure to hit the read link for a video demonstration, and do mind the managerial cat on duty.

[Thanks, Kipkay]

We kid, we kid; with devices like the N95 kicking around, Nokia came into the 21st century long ago. But only now offering USB charging cables? Really? Better late than never, we suppose. Look for the CA-100 to recharge models with 2 millimeter jacks, while the CA-70 will replenish older 3.5 millimeter handsets. No official word on availability, but these can't possibly be too hard to produce.

[Via Tech Digest]

Here's one we weren't exactly counting on seeing. Motorola's cheif executive Ed Zander rolled into a packed room here at CES on a bright yellow bicycle, topped off by having Queen's "Bicycle Race" cranked in the background. Yes, oddly enough, Motorola is coming out with a self-branded bike for "emerging markets," which translates into countries where energy sources are scarce. While the company has seen declines here in America due to a very saturated handset market, nearly 5 million folks per month are going mobile in China, thus the need to penetrate those potentially lucrative third world areas. The vehicle will sport a cellphone charging system to provide a way to energize those handsets so intently desired all around the globe. As expected, a cradle on the handlebars would house the mobile, while the motion of the pedals would generate electricity to recharge its battery pack. While this might not sound convenient or even worthwhile in a place like America, "more than 500 million Chinese people rely on bicycles as their primary mode of transportation," which could also mean that half a billion folks in China will soon be cruising the streets while doubling as an AC adapter.

[Via Textually]

Following South Korea's lead, the Chinese government is now demanding that future handsets, regardless of brand, be able to recharge via a standard USB port. The Ministry of Information Industry (MII) hopes that the mandate will slash phone costs for users, eliminate proprietary hassles, and more importantly, eliminate waste within the country. Considering nearly "100 million" folks in China alone replace their phone annually, that's a lot of antiquated chargers hitting the junk pile, and this new standard hopes to cure the problem and cut back on waste before it gets too out of hand. While we've no idea when this mandate will actually be enforced, these head honchos sound pretty serious, and considering the estimated $306 million the country will be saving, we wouldn't doubt their earnestness.

[Via Techdirt]