Tech21, a recent UK startup based out of London have taken device protection in the form of cases, to a new level. You might have heard of the company before, they were featured on Dragon’s Den UK and were one of the few companies to win investment – a healthy £150,000 injection in return for 40% equity.
You might be thinking here’s another brand to saturate an already over-populated market, however Tech21 utilise a new technology called d3o – a specially engineered material made with intelligent molecules. They move freely in a normal, resting capacity but when it comes in to contact with something hard, the molecules interlock and provide an extremely strong bond to protect your device, whether it be your iPhone or Macbook!
So the technology is quite complex, but actually getting it in to the cases would prove to be even more difficult, how do you get a rather slimy orange material to become a suitable case to use with your beloved iPhone? The answer…inject it. By using a special process, the d3o is injected into a case mould, of course it’s not that simple but that’s the process in its simplest form.
So the material is inserted in to the corners of the case and upon impact, the shock is absorbed and dissipated around the device stopping your iPhone or iPod from becoming damaged. Nifty eh?
Tech21 claim that by using d30, your device is “protected by up to 150% more” than any other case, although the price of an iBand can have about the same markup as its competitors. But as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.
With d3o being a very new technology with alot of potential, I think Tech21 have done well to get in early with signing a 3 year exclusivity contract with them for the mobile and technology market. Along with having 2 extremely experienced business angels on board, Theo Paphitis and Peter Jones. Tech21 has a bright future ahead and I hope to see a multitude of new products from them.
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