Next time you 're on the go and your phone is running out of juice , try a phone box . No , not for calling . To charge your phone . One of London 's famous red telephone boxes has been painted green and transformed into a solar-powered charging station , as part of a design competition . The so-called `` Solarbox '' can be found in central London 's Tottenham Court Road , and there are plans for more to be opened by early 2015 . The Solarbox has chargers for Samsung , BlackBerry and the iPhones 4 , 5 and 6 . It can power an estimated 100 devices a day through its roof-mounted solar panel . It was designed by London School of Economics graduates Harold Craston and Kirsty Kenney , in response to a competition run by the Mayor of London . Their eco-friendly invention won them $ 8,000 and a spot in a mentorship scheme in the Mayor 's Low Carbon Entrepreneur competition , making it possible to pilot their new business in London 's streets . The kiosk funds itself by advertising , and using the service is free . Its inventors say the costs to run the machine are low -- it requires only basic maintenance such as cleaning , and initial costs of installing each Solarbox is forecast to be recouped within three months . The two wanted to use their interest in renewable energy to provide a service that people would really need . `` We 've all been caught out -- phone battery life just ca n't keep up with the pace of our modern lives , '' Kenney said . `` By using solar power and repurposing old phone boxes we have been able to provide a real solution in an environmentally friendly way , '' she said . The rise of the smart phone has made thousands of the UK capital 's phone boxes redundant , except for tourists looking for photo opportunities . The Solarbox is not the only unused phone box to be transformed into a new creation -- there are phone box libraries , sofas and even shower booths . Redundant phone boxes in Sydney , New York and other cities are being turned into free Wi-Fi hotspots , while several villages in England have equipped theirs with defibrillators .
London 's red phone boxes are being turned into a solar-powered phone charging boxes . Two design entrepreneurs are behind the idea , which is being rolled out across the city . It 's not the first time traditional phone boxes have been given a modern lease of life . Others have been turned into libraries , sofas and shower booths .