Why not that is, if you have a prosthetic arm. Although it’s hard to believe we haven’t seen this before, [Trevor Prideaux], according to [The Telegraph’s] article, “has become the world’s first ever patient to have a smartphone docking system built into his prosthetic arm.”
[Trevor] was born without a forearm, and, as he puts it, he’s used to adapting to things. However, he thought others might be struggling with the same problem, especially those that become disabled later in life. Once their help was secured, Nokia and the Exeter Mobility Centre got to work on his new limb and produced a prototype in five weeks!
[Trevor] is quite pleased with his new phone docking system. Texting especially is much easier and safer, and the phone can be removed when needed for making calls. We love to see hacks like this where people enhance their abilities using technology! For another hack helping those with disabilities, check out this wheelchair elevator/winch made for a non-accessible apartment.
Next hack: writing an Android app to control the action on that hook! 10,000 RPM > GO!
That’s fantastic… and a super clean build too!
I think this is a great idea. No reason to hold onto the phone with your other hand, and using a bluetooth headset means you could carry a box or whatever while still using the phone. Seems that the phone might be more useful if you could swivel it into a vertical or horizontal position, which would be a bit more complicated.
Also, I don’t know how expensive that prosthetic is, but I know they’re quite expensive. At the rate most people seem to be replacing their phones, your arm would be out of date within a year or two. How often do these normally get replaced?
Smartphones are upgraded every few years, but the underlying USB power/data won’t change for a while. To that end, new dock could be installed with each new phone, but the prosthetic arm could be kept. Even with the switch to USB3, that would just involve some fairly simple re-writing.
(Italics should have only been on the word /dock/, whoops)
The bed the smartphone lies in has to match the shape though.
Insert obligatory “ARM-based smartphone” joke here.
Good pun!
It was a dark and stormy night…. And all that was left was the…. SMARTPHONE DOCK!…
I bet he could fit a big enough battery in that prosthetic to run a smart phone ALL DAY. With Bluetooth on, even!
“Why not that is, if you have a prosthetic arm.”
YOU CAN’T TELL ME WHAT NOT TO DO!!! YOU’RE NOT MY DAD!! Where’d I put my scalpel?
TeenTech Angst? By the way, here use my knife.This is neat but I am not sure how “newsworthy” it is. Or hackish for that matter. The idea was well executed but I guess I don’t see how amazing of an idea this really is?
Needs a Pip-Boy interface
Complete with V.A.T.S.
Captain iHook. Yarr.
Needs some kind of thermoelectric generator to convert waste body heat up against the prostetic into usable power for the phone. Also, on the point of what happens when he needs a a new phone- why not have the phone cradle section made from a lower cost material and removable for easy replacement to accomidate a new phone? If I had a friend or accquantance who was down a limb… but no, even with my heckling nobody lost an arm to the woodchipper this year… perhaps 2012 will yeald some test subjects….
“With this, I will impress the ladies.”
Very cool.
Not only that, he can “I’m the first!” Double cool whammy!
He seems like a guy that is comfortable in his own skin so to speak. And I’m really glad he got the help he asked for from the other companies.
A lot of them would have just passed on it.
Good publicity there, and perhaps future tech for them. I like it all the way around.
Hard to resist the urge to suggest the words….
“Hands Free Kit”