New O2 phone charger cuts wasted energy

O2 yesterday launched a new eco-friendly mobile phone charger that could save the UK £30 million per year in energy bills.

The O2 Universal Charger reduces electricity consumption by up to 70% compared to standard chargers.

It does this through an in-built power control system that cuts power usage once the phone is completely charged, or when the phone is unplugged from the charger.

Heat loss - a significant source of wasted energy in many phone chargers - has also been eliminated.

Recent research by O2 found that a typical mobile phone charger wastes an average of 2.8KWh of energy every year.

With 73 million handsets in use across the UK, if everyone used the O2 Universal Charger the energy saved could be used to make 7 billion cups of tea.

Carbon emission reductions, if everyone used the charger, would be equivalent to taking 36,000 cars off the road.

The charger is the first product of its kind to be launched in the UK by a mobile network, and is compatible with Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson handsets.

It is available in all O2 retail outlets, priced £14.99.