VIDEO: British student looking to launch smartphone made with wood
At Middlesex University in London, a senior design student has built a smartphone out of wood. He's ramping up efforts to get the product produced on a mass scale and hopes to launch it by the end of this year.
A British student is ready to launch what he says is the world's first smart phone made primarily of wood.
Kieron-Scott Woodhouse, a 24-year-old senior, a product and design major, at Middlesex University, has started his own company to bring the project to life.
"I think a lot of people want something different," he said. "I think the way the market is changing, people appreciate products that are more bespoke and tell more of a story."
His smartphone, called AdZero, will run using Google's Android platform — there's a working prototype already. But when it's time to bring the phone to market, the phones will be made in China, using locally sourced bamboo.
"We're trying to find a new market so we're not going to be in your mainstream stores. We're looking to be more in boutiques," Woodhouse said.
Through social media, Woodhouse's project was discovered my Chinese technology investor Jerry Lau, who contributed $20,000 to help get the project launched and is trying to put together a broader manufacturing and marketing project for wood smartphone project.
"Right now we just need the funding to be complete before we start going forward with the actual production," Lau said.
The phone's not just retro-chic though. It's flash is cutting edge, built in a ring around the lens in a way designed to minimize shadows. An added benefit is it's weight. Woodhouse says the phone weighs half as much as an iPhone.
"This is something that will stand out. Everyone will know where that brand is coming from," Lau said.
Lau and Woodhouse hope to get the product launched by the end of the year.
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