The first solar charger you'll actually want to own

We remember when we first saw a solar phone charger. For a brief, wonderful moment, we thought this pocket-sized piece of shiny black plastic was going to change our charging world.

Never again would we be caught weighing up the use of that final, precious trickle of battery juice, as we plugged in our handset into this magical gadget that promised to turn sunlight into phone food. 

Then we tried one. And another. And we soon realised they were shit.

Solar Paper is hoping to rekindle that first spark of excitement: the thinnest, lightest solar charger ever made.

Weighing 120 grams, and capable of squeezing in between the pages of a book at nine by 19 by 1.1 centimetres, a Solar Paper charger will be able to top up an iPhone 6 in two and a half hours on a sunny day - about the same amount of time it takes to charge via the standard wall plug. 

Should you wish to charge a larger device, such as an iPad or camera, or hope to aid your battery on an overcast day (read - British Summer), you can add an extra piece of "Paper" to your charging array. With an increased surface volume, you'll be able to catch more rays.

YOLK, the creators of Solar Paper, are currently putting their gadget through an insanely successful Kickstarter round (it's edging toward the sharp end of $500,000 in backers). Currently available for around £70 ($106), the first batch of chargers should arrive in November.

At which point, they'll be redundant for about four months.