A wood-burning camping stove that can be used to recharge a mobile phone doesn’t seem like the most obvious marriage of two technologies, but it’s easy to imagine how such a gadget could be useful to anyone who likes to stray off the beaten track from time to time, or just as an emergency power source.
The BioLite CampStove weighs just under 1kg and has a compact design that folds up for easy transportation. It can still be used for cooking too, and can use more or less any combustible organic material for fuel.
Despite its small size, the BioLite CampStove can generate 5kW of thermal energy and key to its performance is its integrated 1W electric fan that blows air through the burning fuel to improve combustion.
The fan is powered by a thermoelectric module that converts heat from the fire into electricity and this also provides sufficient power to charge mobile devices via the built-in USB port.
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The BioLite CampStove costs $129 (£82) and is available for pre-order now for delivery later this year.