Digicel, ZTE and Intivation are making 'hay when the sun is shining'. Their joint venture handset - Digicel Coral 200 Solar Mobile Phone, uses solar energy for charging up. Hence you do not require electricity. This world's first solar powered handheld from Digicel has been manufactured by ZTE using the solar technology from Intivation. This gadget had been showcased at the Mobile World Congress, 2009 held in Barcelona as well.

This cost effective cell phone is expected to be released soon. It has a square 1.5" display with a resolution of 128 x 128 pixels. It operates on dual-band GSM. You can as well store 300 entries in the phone book.

Digicel is a Caribbean and Central American mobile telecommunications operator. ZTE is a Chinese mobile phone manufacturer. Intivation is an Amsterdam based company that specialises in utilising solar energy to power up devices, also increasing their efficiency.

Other environment friendly phones that have been announced are the Samsung Blue Earth and the Commtiva Sola.

Not much of a hifi technology-rich phone, the Digicel Coral 200 Solar Go-Green Phone offers the basic mobile phone features, like calling and messaging. It is not one of those handsets with which you would fall in love at first sight. It is a little bulky, owing to the solar batteries housed in it. Yet, it is a boon for all those people around the world who are not blessed with electricity.

Read expert reviews articles, buying guides to buy a cheap mobile phones from leading manufacturers in UK