As an avalanche of new phone announcements emanate from the 2008 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, a prototype handset that may not even make it to production has stolen the headlines in the main stream press. The reason: it's Nokia's (and the world's) first handset to be 100% composed of recycled materials.

Ignore the fact that it's not even functional for a moment. The point of the "remade" handset is to trial production techniques which may lead the way for the entire electronics industry going alot "greener". It's casing comes from recycled aluminium cans, it uses plastic from drink bottles, and the rubber key pad is made using old car tyres. The circuitry is produced using more environmentally sound printing techniques and the screen is engineered to minimise energy use.

Combining these ideas with a wind-up phone which inventor Trevor Baylis has recently hinted at, and we may not be far away from the world's first carbon-neutral mobile.