Electricity? Pffftt. Soon all you’re need to charge your mobile phone is a simple tealight candle. Well that and the tPOD1, an innovative piece of kit that uses the heat from the candle to generate enough power to charge a phone or light a room.

The tPOD1 (it stands for thermal-electrical power on demand) is about the size of a can of baked beans and is designed to hover directly above a small candle. Using the heat from the candle’s flame, the tPOD1 transforms it into electricity, storing it within its power generator.

This generator can then be used to power a compatible battery pack that can be plugged into your iPhone or Android smartphone. Okay, so there are a few steps inbetween lighting the candle and receiving a charge, but for the likes of camping trips where no electrical output is available it should prove useful.

Tellurex, the brains behind the device, is looking beyond camping trips though, claiming its technology could be used in developing countries where no electrical grid is available.

Tellurex Corporation has designed the tPOD1 through funding through Kickstarter.com. It hopes to begin shipping the product by the end of August, but is asking for donations to ensure it reaches this target. 

If such a project grabs your fancy, you can pledge money here.

What do you think of the tPOD1? Does it have a future? Let us know in the comments below.