While most smartphone companies focus on improving internal components, TECNO is delving into something more exciting – outer materials that take smartphone design to new heights. They offered a sneak peek into their research, which surpasses simple glass or metal designs. TECNO’s team is exploring color-changing materials, 3D stereoscopic displays for the phone’s back, organic fabric leather, fiberglass, and even fragrant materials to give smartphones a unique scent. Although these materials aren’t yet ready for mass production, it’s thrilling to imagine a future where phones look and even smell different!
1. Chameleon Coloring Technology
TECNO has developed a groundbreaking technology called Chameleon Coloring Technology, aiming to achieve the dream of a color-changing smartphone. This innovation uses ultra-fine prisms to shift colors without polarization, setting a new standard in the industry. By rotating angles with an electric field, it captures vivid hues with lightning-fast reaction times, as quick as 0.03 seconds. Not only is it responsive, but it also promises a long lifespan and low power consumption, measured in milliamperes. Additionally, it offers customizable color options and selective color absorption to cater to different preferences.
2. 3D Stereo Optical Grating
Imagine if your phone could do more than just change colors. What if it had its own built-in 3D display on the back, no glasses required? The 3D Stereo Optical Grating technology achieves this marvel by using special materials and patterns to create a depth effect. It gives images a floating appearance, enhancing colors and patterns. By bending light in specific ways, it can cover the entire surface or just parts of it. This technology is perfect for large-scale printing, ensuring vibrant colors and detailed patterns quickly and accurately. Moreover, it can add movement to images, making it ideal for producing high-quality products in factories.
3. Layered Fiberglass
Layered fiberglass outshines regular glass due to its superior strength and flexibility, even in thin layers. It can withstand bending and pressure without breaking, and it’s remarkably lightweight, making it ideal for durable yet easy-to-handle items. To achieve a sleek, metallic appearance, a special coating technique is applied, enhancing its luxurious feel and smooth texture. Unlike ordinary spray paint, this high-tech process ensures a top-notch finish that resists smudges and fingerprints, keeping it clean and polished for longer. Layered fiberglass isn’t just tough and attractive; it’s also practical for everyday use, especially in situations where touch and cleanliness are important.
4. Colored Textured Glass
Colored textured glass is made by melting different colored glass, including clear, blue, and white, and stirring them evenly in a special container. This precise process creates beautifully textured glass with vibrant, long-lasting colors. It can be customized to suit individual tastes, offering a unique and enchanting hue reminiscent of precious gemstones. Moreover, it can mimic the look of fine ceramics while being thinner than real ceramics.
5. Fragrant Leather
TECNO’s Fragrant Leather is a fascinating innovation. It infuses scent into vegan leather through a special process. Small capsules filled with scented oils are mixed into the leather’s PU resin, carefully adjusting the amount for the perfect fragrance strength. This durable material not only smells pleasant but also serves practical purposes. It’s designed to maintain its scent for a long time, typically over a year with normal use, as long as it’s kept away from harsh conditions like direct sunlight or extreme heat. TECNO offers popular scents like cologne, ocean, and rose.
6. Organosilicone Fabric Leather
TECNO is developing a unique synthetic leather with an ‘organosilicone’ coating instead of the typical polyurethane coating. This fabric is coated with a silicone polymer, making it easy to clean and resistant to odors. It’s also eco-friendly, with very low emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), improving indoor air quality. The durability of organosilicone fabric leather makes it suitable for various weather conditions, and it’s recyclable, promoting a more sustainable lifecycle. Furthermore, this material represents an advancement in fabric technology by using high-quality silicone coatings, reducing reliance on carbon-based materials and lowering carbon emissions.
7. Renewable Fiber
You’ve probably seen fiberglass in many places, but have you ever seen it on the back of your phone? TECNO has created a unique type of fiberglass using recycled plastics. The fibers are sourced from shredded plastic bottles, diverting them from landfills and oceans. This fiberglass is flexible, durable, and visually stunning. Each phone has a unique appearance because the fibers are laid out differently. Additionally, the fiberglass texture naturally resists fingerprints. Another benefit is its sustainability; not only is it made from recycled plastic, but it can also be recycled again in the future.
8. Color Blending Leather
Leather remains a top choice for crafting high-end smartphone back covers in the tech world. However, the range of available leather colors is often limited, usually offering only solid or two-tone options. TECNO is changing the game with their Color Blending Leather, which introduces color-changing patterns to leather, allowing it to shift hues throughout the day. This process merges multiple colors seamlessly, creating vibrant artwork directly on the leather. The result is a multi-layered color effect with a unique and refined texture that’s also practical, resisting dirt and wear. This innovative color blending technique adds a touch of fashion-forward style and artistic expression to the world of tech accessories.
9. Borderless Foldable Main Screen
Companies like Oppo, Huawei, and Samsung have been leading the way in folding phone technology, but one challenge they haven’t solved is the bezel. TECNO is suggesting a solution by modifying Ultra Thin Glass (UTG) to eliminate the bezels altogether. Although there’s no physical or visual proof yet, it appears that TECNO might introduce a folding concept soon with no bezels.
10. Satellite Communication Technology
TECNO is exploring how to add satellite communication to its phones, similar to what Apple did with the iPhone 14 series. According to the company, this Satellite Communication Technology would allow users to stay connected even in areas with weak or no signal, enhancing safety during activities like camping, hiking, and mountaineering.
