Chief Designer at AD, Kieron-Scott Woodhouse introduces us to the ADzero, a smartphone whose outer casing is wholly made out of bamboo which is an organic and sustainable material. The bamboo used in this phone has been treated for four years to improve its strength and wear & tear characterestics.
The project came about after Kieron-Scott uploaded some of his earlier design sketches to the web and were picked up by AD, a China based company. What followed were a series of design iterations with different materials and culminating in the bamboo clad version to be launched commercially towards the end of 2012 or Q1 2013. The company claims that the phone will ship with contemporary hardware at the time of launch, will run the Ice Cream Sandwich version of Google's Android OS and will target the higher end of the smartphone market. Read on to catch Kieron-Scott's interview below:
Kieron-Scott, please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us something about your company.
Hi I'm Kieron-Scott and im Co-Founder and Chief Designer at AD. We are a new startup independent smartphone manufacturer with operations in China and the UK.
How did you come up with the concept of manufacturing a phone that is made of bamboo? What was the inspiration to use bamboo particularly?
We went through an extremely conceptual initial design process when we were first coming up with ideas for Adzero. We experimented with all types of materials from Corian to Copper we tried everything. As a designer my biggest priority was having a material that really told a story and grew with the user. Whether that be because of it's physical properties or the technology we used to create this story. Originally this design was in copper but i thought it lacked the story we where looking for to make the product truly individual. At first we tried normal hard wood and we realised this was the missing link, the Initial Concept renders looked amazing. From this point we looked into how we could make this commercially viable as well as ensuring we didn't have a detrimental effect on the environment. Bamboo was the perfect answer not only is it extremely durable and strong it looks great and ages even more beautifully.
You are currently a final year student at Middlesex University. How do you manage to juggle between your roles as that of a chief designer at a start-up and that of a student?
Well it's kind of crazy at the moment, like having 2 fulltime jobs. I have about 3 months left of Uni and im working on my Final major project. Thankfully it is mobile orientated so it's beneficial to me and they work hand-in-hand with each other.
When and at what price point do you expect to launch the phone? Why did you choose the Android platform specifically?
I can't confirm an exact price but it will sit with the higher-end smartphones with specs to match. We chose the Android platform because we felt it was an extremely successful, well executed OS that we thought we could tailor to our users by putting our own spin on it (ADAOS). I dont think we would be in the position we are in if Android wasn't around, it has opened up so many doors for independent companies such as ourselves.
Elaborate on the technical specifications of the phone? Could you tell us about some of the features of your phone that differentiate it from the average smartphone?
As the mobile market develops and moves so rapidly our tech specs are set to change by the time we launch. What i can confirm is that it will be at the higher-end of the smartphone market and will feature the ring flash technology you can see on the rear panel of the phone. Another big part of the ADzero is the OS. it will be running our version of the latest release of Android at point of release, ADAOS. ADAOS reduces some of the levels of Android to tie up some of the 'loose-ends' of the OS and create a more intuitive user experience and follow a design language that is coherent with AD.
From where do you draw the inspiration for your designs? What other designers do you look up to?
I think the biggest influential designers for me at the moment are designers that create timeless pieces. Pieces you can look back on 15 years down the line and still say 'Hey, thats beautiful'. Obviously Dieter Rams falls into this category, i went to see an exhibition celebrating his work a couple of years ago and was in awe of everything he done. That guy didn't step a foot wrong in my eyes. Also Naoto Fukasawa is another one of my favourites, again timeless well executed pieces.
Apart from designing, what are your favourite activities?
I'm a keen Swimmer and always have been, I used to compete at a high level until i was about 15-16 now i just train to keep fit and healthy. I also do a little bit of martial arts.
If you could have one superhero (or magical) power, what would it be and why?
Hmmm, that is a hard one. Sounds sad, but this is a regular thought of mine, I have always been a massive fan of Xmen... I'd love to have Super Human strength or the ability to Heal, I think it would go hand-in-hand with my martial arts haha. Im such a loser!
If you could peek inside the studio/toolbox of any designer/artist/craftsperson, whose would it be and why?
Dieter Rams, Naoto Fakasawa obviously or even Paul Cocksedge he does some amazing stuff with light!
What are your future plans for the company? Are you working on any other killer designs to make guys like me go- wow!?
Our future plans for AD is to continue developing innovative products and 'killer designs' :) . We are currently in the conceptual stage of the accessories that will be included with the handset. I cant reveal much now, but they will be just as cool as ADzero.
Thank you Kieron for taking the time for this interview, your product is an inspiration for many out there. We wish you the very best for the future.
Check out this video where Kieron-Scott and Lead Engineer Jerry Lao take us on the journey of evolution of the phone:
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This one is a very new design and it makes me want to buy it. The only thing that stops me is that I think there are a few drawbacks to this design. First off, the mobile might heat up a bit faster because wood is technically a lot thicker and denser than platinum or other soft metal alloy. It could also do a lot of damage inside the phone if the wood chips off from the outside.