Samsung, the South Korean electronics group, has just showcased its first solar-powered mobile phone ever on Monday, at an industry event in Barcelona, promising a commercial launch in the next few months. The phone is called ‘Blue Earth’, and it’s intended to be more environmentally friendly, offering the innovative ‘Eco mode’ interface, which enables users to adjust backlight duration and Bluetooth for greater efficiency.

Blue Earth has solar panels on its back, which the company claims are able to charge the battery in 10-14 hours, which would offer approximately four hours of talk time. The device is expected to be launched in Europe in the second half of 2009 and it can also be charged normally via a plug, with the solar panels used to top up the battery in order to extend its power.

Furthermore, LG Electronics also presented a prototype solar-powered phone on display, but the company had no launch date or name for the device to offer to interested ones. Analysts say this kind of devices are very useful for outdoor people in developed countries, like fishermen or campers, who head into the wilderness without access to electricity.

Samsung’s Blue Earth has recyclable materials and a built-in pedometer, which shows how far the user has walked. Of course, if the price is acceptable, the device could also help millions of poor worldwide who live either without or with limited access to electricity. Samsung said Blue Earth’s touch screen is made from plastic taken from used water bottles and it also launched two phones with 8-megapixel cameras, the Ultratouch and OmniaHD, and two music phones, the BeatDJ and BeatDisc.