First the British invented waterproof Wellington boots; now they’ve invented a way to derive power from those boots. Could corduroy-friction-power be far off?

The European telecom firm Orange, which sponsors the huge Glastonbury Festival at the end of June, is promoting its new “Power Wellies” as a means for festivalgoers to keep their cellphones charged.

Users will have to stomp in the Pilton mud for about 12 hours to generate enough electricity to charge a cellphone for one hour, however — so the wellies are more notable for novelty than practicality.

Read more: popsic.com