HTC and O2 will sell a new "flagship" smartphone without a charger in the near future. A Micro USB to USB cable will still be included with the handset, but the mains charger will be removed. O2 says it's making the change to avoid adding to the population of 100 million chargers that go unused by consumers in the UK. According to additional data from the carrier, 70 percent of the 30 million customers that buy new phones each year already have the relevant charger for their handset.

By removing the superfluous accessory, O2 and HTC will be able to cut down on packaging and transport costs. O2 will trial the scheme with HTC's new phone, but the carrier's ultimate goal is to remove chargers from all phones sold by 2015. There’s no indication yet as to what new phone from HTC the pilot applies to, although it may be the mystery 5-inch device that has surfaced in the past.