The OnePlus 8T Concept phone has color change and camera camouflage capabilities

As smartphone makers rush to achieve faster transmission speeds, greater storage capacities and faster charging times, it is a change of pace to find a new phone that ignores all of these activities.

Instead, OnePlus showed off a phone concept on Monday that marks an interesting shift in focus with some engaging news. The OnePlus 8T Concept features a coating that can change color. And it takes advantage of mmWave technology to perceive and track objects and activities.

The phone’s glass contains metal oxides that change color when different voltages are applied. When a message arrives or a friend calls, the coating may change, for example, from dark blue to silver. The coating is called ECMF, for color, material and electronic finishing. The inspiration for the fluid color pattern was derived from the Turkish thermal waters rich in calcite that attracted visitors dating literally from 8 BC

“Our designers were inspired by these colors in flowing water in various shades in the hot springs of Pamukkale, Turkey,” noted a post by OnePlus on Monday. “Nature has perfected many designs and, taking inspiration from Pamukkale and other natural elements, we can create new interaction experiences that are more natural, intuitive and effortless.”

Fluid colors can be used in conjunction with a radar module that uses 5G technology to allow the phone to “perceive, create images, locate and track objects”. For example, users can interact with the phone without touching it: when color changes alert the user to an incoming call from a business customer, hand gestures can be used to answer the call, open stored biographical data contacts or access documents outlining previous transactions with the caller.

Future applications may include music production, in which hand gestures can increase the bass, decrease the volume or add reverb effects to the audio tracks.

The radar component uses mmWave technology, but operates separately from the actual communications transmissions on the phone.

As a concept phone, it will not go into production. It serves only to show the current directions the manufacturer is taking and to encourage interested parties to imagine potential future applications.

OnePlus notes that the radar component can also track breathing patterns. With the growing interest in healthcare apps these days, developers can soon track breathing patterns and generate color changes to help users deal with problems with blood pressure, breathing or blood sugar to relax and better control its internal functions.

Earlier this year, OnePlus launched the 8T, which featured a similar color change feature. The rear window covering the camera assembly can change from opaque to transparent gray when the camera application is activated. When the application is closed, the glass becomes opaque again, hiding the cameras housed in a swollen segment of the back box. The company referred to this feature as “the invisible camera”, as it effectively hid the camera’s intrusive lenses. It was a nod to the fact that, however elegant modern phones may be, the bumps and appearance of three or more ringed lenses create the continuous flow of the phone’s casing.

No date has been set for when any of these features can be applied to a new generation of phones.

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