Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Liquipel. When it rains, it really does pour. More nanotech protection for devices.

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I first started hearing about the possibilities of nanotechnology years ago and I’ve seen some really amazing slidesets and concept videos here and there over the years.

Nanotech will be to the ’10s what plastic was to the ’50s.

Last week I wrote a blog entry about a nanotech-based protective coating for devices called WaterBlock from a startup Hz0. (I said it looked like Gorilla Glass for the guts of the device.)

Here’s a very similar offering called "Liquipel" from a company with the same name. The company claims that Liquipel is a super-thin nanotech layer that is steamed onto and into devices. The company offers the service to individuals for $60, but I would think their business model is to go after big volume vendors. Needless to say, volume costs would have to come way down as to not harm BoM and margins.

On the company’s webpage they claim that their technology makes devices "waterproof" but what they seem to mean to say is water resistant.

Robust handsets are nothing new. Mainstream vendors such as Nokia, Samsung, and Sony | Ericsson have been showing beach-friendly phones for years. But they have always been a niche. Now it looks like the wet look is going mainstream.

It’s looking like Samsung and Apple are already starting to talk tough. If I were a competing handset vendor, I’d pick up the phone and call these vendors today. You don’t want to be all washed up.





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