LED flashlights are coming on the market in a flurry lately, but here's one with a difference: If you want to see it do its thing, pull its string. It has a pull cord like a Chatty Cathy, but instead of saying innocuous things it charges up the battery that powers its 5-LED flashlight.

What really might make this device useful in a pinch is that you can plug your cellphone into it and charge that up, too, just by pulling that string. It also plugs into a car's accessory outlet and an included 12-volt AC adapter. Check out a video of the Forever Flashlight in action:

A couple of tugs of the string is enough to give you a few minutes' worth of bright light, but it's not clear how many times you'd need to pull the $29.95 device's string to charge up your cellphone. But you guys are used to pulling and pulling as long as it takes, aren't you? – Charlie White

Product Page [Gadget Universe, via Coolest Gadgets]

Contact information for this author is not available.