Vodafone UK has created the newest must have accessory for anyone who lives in a rainy place. It’s called the Vodafone Booster Brolly and it promises to have the ability to charge a mobile phone and improve its reception all while it keeps you dry. The company is planning on releasing their new umbrella during the UK’s festival season this summer.
The Booster Brolly was designed in 6 weeks by Dr. Kenneth Tong, a lecturer in antennas and microwave technology at University College London. He created the umbrella to charge a phone in a docking station connected via USB to an on-board battery. The on-board battery is charged from 12 solar panels on the accessory’s canopy. The umbrella’s battery can be saved for later phone charging use or used to light an integrated flashlight in the handle. Tong also fitted the umbrella with an antenna in order to improve phone signal for everyone underneath it or in the surrounding area.
For more information see the article, “Unfolding soon: Vodafone’s signal-boosting, phone-charging umbrella” by Kevin C. Tofel.
