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PhoneSoap: A smartphone charger for germaphobes

Not to gross you out, but your cell phone is basically a Petri dish of bacteria. However, a new Kickstarter project is hoping zap those germs away so you can continue to text from your porcelain throne.

Jacqueline Seng
Jacqueline Seng is a presenter/writer for CNET Asia, focusing on mobile phones. Her induction into the world of IT involved typing out stories on a computer in kindergarten -- not that much has changed.
Jacqueline Seng
2 min read
Screenshot by CNET

Some say they do their best thinking in the bathroom, so it's no surprise so many of you text, tweet, and talk while on the throne. But here's the stinker: research shows that 16 percent of cell phones have fecal matter on them. Eww.

Even so, sanitizing our germ-riddled smartphones probably isn't something we do regularly (in fact, this writer has never done it), unless you're germaphobe. But what if were as easy as charging your phone?

Enter the PhoneSoap. Created by four germaphobic entrepreneurs, it's essentially an enclosed box that blasts your phone with harmless UV-C rays. UV-C light is able to kill 99.9 percent of bacteria and viruses by penetrating cell walls and disrupting their DNA. The light is switched on for three to five minutes at a time, and there's no heat generated, according to the PhoneSoap's makers.

The external box is made of aircraft-grade aluminum, while the internal platform is a special UV-transparent plastic. Anything that fits within its dimensions (maximum of about 6 inches by 4 inches by 1.2 inches) can be put inside to be sanitized, so even your earphones can be disinfected.

Unlike the $50 Violight Cell Phone Sanitizer, the PhoneSoap is able to charge your smartphone at the same time via Apple's 30-pin connector or micro-USB cable. The creators are currently raising funds on Kickstarter to produce the charger/sanitizer, with a goal of $18,000 by May 2. A pledge of at least $39 will get you one PhoneSoap, while a donation of $75 gets you two. You'll only be billed if the makers reach their funding goal.

Of course, using a disinfecting liquid cleaner or sanitizing wipes on your mobile device may be a cheaper option, but that's just a lot more hard work.

(Source: Crave Asia)