Australian scientists have made a mobile phone that can be used even in locations that would normally have no reception.

The phones, which contain a built-in mini-tower, allow users to make connections through other phones using Wi-Fi to create a network.

The research, which was performed at South Australia's Flinders University, tested the phone's effectiveness in the event of a natural disaster or a terrorist attack, instances when mobile phone services may be cut off. Tests were carried out in the remote Outback; mobile phones cannot pick up a signal in the area.

"There was absolutely no infrastructure or support for the telephones so they were acting entirely on their own to carry the calls," said Dr. Paul Gardiner-Stephen, one of the researchers, in an interview with the Telegraph. "One of our dreams is that every phone will come out with this one day so that if there is a disaster anywhere in the world everyone's phones will then switch over to this mode as a fallback."

The phones, which are not likely to replace current mobile systems, may be used to create a fail-safe. Currently, the phones can pick up another signal a few hundred yards. The research team hopes to later expand the range.