Tech
Bamboo-clad mobile phone to be launched by UK student
Published Thursday, Feb 2 2012, 18:39 GMT | By Andrew Laughlin | 8 comments
A British student is to launch a new mobile phone clad in bamboo, after an investor backed the eco-friendly smartphone.
Known as the 'ADzero', the phone is due to go on sale later in the year and has been created by Middlesex University student Kieran-Scott Woodhouse.
Powered by the Android operating system, the phone's casing is made of four-year-old organically grown bamboo that has been treated to make it more durable.
The smartphone is sculpted out of a single piece of bamboo and is said to be around half the weight of an Apple iPhone.
Woodhouse, from Shepherd's Bush in London, decided to create the phone after becoming frustrated with the similar designs offered by manufacturers.
He was contacted by a Chinese technology entrepreneur after posting the designs online, and now has funding to take the smartphone into production.
Initially intended for launch just in China, the strong reception to the project in the UK means that it will now also come to British retail outlets later in 2012.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Woodhouse said: "Bamboo may seem like a strange material to use for a phone, but it's actually extremely strong and very durable, perfect qualities for this kind of application."
Dr Andy Bardill, his tutor on Middlesex University's product design course, added: "The web has opened up the highly competitive design sphere and enabled those with talent to get noticed more easily. Kieron is a remarkable designer."
The first prototypes of the ADzero are said to be running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest mobile operating system from Google.
The smartphone's screen size is larger that the iPhone 4S, while the handset features "Mobile Ring Flash Technology", which is claimed to provide better lighting from a single point source.
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Known as the 'ADzero', the phone is due to go on sale later in the year and has been created by Middlesex University student Kieran-Scott Woodhouse.
Powered by the Android operating system, the phone's casing is made of four-year-old organically grown bamboo that has been treated to make it more durable.
The smartphone is sculpted out of a single piece of bamboo and is said to be around half the weight of an Apple iPhone.
© Adzero
Woodhouse, from Shepherd's Bush in London, decided to create the phone after becoming frustrated with the similar designs offered by manufacturers.
He was contacted by a Chinese technology entrepreneur after posting the designs online, and now has funding to take the smartphone into production.
Initially intended for launch just in China, the strong reception to the project in the UK means that it will now also come to British retail outlets later in 2012.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Woodhouse said: "Bamboo may seem like a strange material to use for a phone, but it's actually extremely strong and very durable, perfect qualities for this kind of application."
Dr Andy Bardill, his tutor on Middlesex University's product design course, added: "The web has opened up the highly competitive design sphere and enabled those with talent to get noticed more easily. Kieron is a remarkable designer."
The first prototypes of the ADzero are said to be running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest mobile operating system from Google.
The smartphone's screen size is larger that the iPhone 4S, while the handset features "Mobile Ring Flash Technology", which is claimed to provide better lighting from a single point source.
> More tech news
> More odd news
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