Phones collect germs – apparently germs that are 18x more harmful than those on the handle of a male public toilet. What a lovely thought. Well a new device will make it possible to clean your phone, while charging it at the same time.
PhoneSoap is a small box that encases your phone, simultaneously charging and cleaning it using UV-C light. Used in hospitals worldwide, UV-C light penetrates the cell wall of bacteria, destroying it, killing 99.99% of bacteria on your phone.
Designed by Wesley LaPorte and Dan Barnes, the idea for PhoneSoap came from the premise that people wash their hands, but not their phones. Yet because we use our phones every day, they pick up dirt and when we talk they get warm, which is of course a breeding ground for germs. Reports are that 1 in 6 phones have fecal matter on them.
Despite such stomach churning facts, few people are likely to remember to clean their smartphones every morning or evening. PhoneSoap is designed to clean your phone with minimum fuss and without adding any extra steps.
Put the phone into PhoneSoap and it will fire a short burst of 3-5 minutes of UV-C light to clean, after this it will shut off. Of course the box continues to charge your phone too, with built-in micro USB Cord for Android phones and Apple connector.
The team behind PhoneSoap are currently looking for funding on KickStarter, where you can pledge $39 to pre-order, with delivery expected in August 2012. Until then, we’re off to clean our phone…
Leave a Reply