Published in Mobiles

Portugal uncorks a new smartphone

by on02 July 2018


Might float better when you drop it in the loo

A Portuguese tech firm is releasing a smartphone whose case is made from cork.

For those who game in late, Portugal has rather a lot of cork which is a natural and renewable material native to the Iberian country. It is the world’s largest cork producer and the phone also marks the latest effort to diversify its use beyond wine bottles.

The Ikimobile phone is one of the first to use materials other than plastic, metal and glass and represents a boost for the country’s technology sector, which has made strides in software development but less in hardware manufacturing.

Chief executive Tito Cardoso said: “We believe the product offers something different, something that people can feel good about using. Cork is harvested only every nine years without hurting the oak trees and is fully recyclable."

The layer of cork covers the phone’s back providing thermal, acoustic and anti-shock insulation. The cork comes in colors ranging from black to light brown and has certified antibacterial properties and protects against battery radiation.

Cardoso said Ikimobile is working with north Portugal’s Minho University to make the phone even “greener” and hopes to replace a plastic body base with natural materials soon.

The material, agglomerated using only natural resins, required years of research and testing for the use in phones.

The plant should churn out 1.2 million phones a year - a drop in the ocean compared to last year’s worldwide smartphone market shipments of almost 1.5 billion.

In 2017, the company sold 400,000 phones assembled in China in 2017, including simple feature phones. It hopes to surpass that amount with local production this year. Top-of-the-line cork models, costing 160-360 euros ($187-$420), make up 40 percent of sales.

Last modified on 02 July 2018
Rate this item
(0 votes)

Read more about: