The world's first wind-up mobile phone has been created by the British firm TCL and is scheduled to launch in the first half of the next year, Telegraph reported on Monday.

The phone, with the working title Ventus, is expected to be sold well in developing countries, according to its creator expert.

India and Africa in particular would be good markets as they have very good mobile coverage but very poor power infrastructure, Telegraph said, citing Tony Davies, the director of TCL.

TCL, which also produces wind-up radios and torches under the Trevor Baylis Brand, created by the British inventor of the wind-up radio Trevor Baylis, says one minute of cranking will allow for four minutes' talk time. A specially developed ultra-thin dynamo creates the power.

Moreover, it can be left on standby forever if its rear-mounted solar panels are in sunlight, before being wound up if a call needs to be made.

Hand-cranked mobile phone chargers are already on the market, but TCL says that because the new device charges the battery directly, rather than having to go through a phone's mains plug, it is much more efficient.

With our system the generator accesses the battery directly, and that really increases the efficiency of the system, Davies told the BBC.

The phone is in the prototype stage at the moment, but the first model is scheduled for launch in the first half of next year.

India Phone