The perils of technology — a cell phone that runs on Coke

Some mashups are great — David Bowie vs. MGMT, for example — and others are not. Now that technology has enabled mashups to move beyond the realm of music and into the wider world, we’re seeing all kinds of weird things. I don’t mind a book table made of books, say.

But a cell phone that runs on Coke?

And yet, such a Frankenstein exists, at least conceptually, thanks to the efforts of designer Daizi Zheng, on behalf of Nokia.

From the project’s website:

A bio-battery is an ecologically friendly, energy supply system which uses enzymes as a catalyst to generate electricity from carbohydrates (currently sugar). In order to use the bio-battery as a power source for the phone all that is required is a small supply of a sugary drink. Once the battery dies only oxygen and water remains. Bio-batteries are fully biodegradable and have, on a single charge, a potential life-span three to four times longer than conventional lithium batteries.

Now, a phone that runs on Coca-Cola is hardly ecologically friendly. But a sugar-powered fuel cell that lasts three times as long as a lithium battery does sound like it has potential.

(via Brand X)