With all the time we’ve had to process the releases from CES 2024, we can definitively say that the Infinix color-changing phone has been one of the most iconic debuts in recent times. The Infinix E-Color Shift is the company’s upgraded version of the color-shifting back panel that they had first showcased in 2021. While it never became commercially available, it appears they haven’t let go of the concept just yet, working to improve its quality and capabilities instead. In the latest Infinix CES 2024 prototype, the power-efficient design allows for much greater customization than the previous version was capable of. With a Pantone card-like design on some versions, the Infinix color-changing panel looks amazing and would instantly find a market if it saw a formal release.
Infinix’s CES 2024 presence garnered a lot of attention this year, not just for the color-changing panels but also for the Infinix Aircharge and Extreme-Temp Battery concepts as well, so let’s explore all of their innovation a little further.
What’s Cooking With Infinix Color Changing Phone?
The Infinix E-Color Shift was awarded the Omdia Innovation Award at ShowStoppers CES 2024 and for very good reason it seems. The Infinix CES 2024 performance showcased the company’s E Ink Prism 3 technology that was used on the back panel to facilitate color customization of the device. According to the company, the Infinix color-changing phone panel uses microstructures where the particles, either positively or negatively charged, are manipulated via the application of different voltages. Changes in the electric field cause the color particles to move with the color changing as a result. To pack so much technology into a smartphone is truly astounding.
Despite the complexity of the tech, the power is consumed only during the change when the Infinix E-Color Shift tech is activated for the purpose of customization. Once you have the desired result, the back panel retains the design without requiring extra power. This is quite unlike a dual-panel device with a screen on the back that would require power to be constantly awake, making the Infinix version a power-efficient alternative. These are loaded on as “animation loops” and while they don’t allow for infinite customizations of the pattern itself, the color changes do leave room for preferences.
One version of the design of the Infinix color-changing phone is the grid feature that allows the four sections around the diamond center to change color. While this one is our personal favorite, the company showcased three other versions as well—another grid pattern, and two with vertical stripes running down the back.
Have you seen this concept phone from Infinix? pic.twitter.com/xMy1qtdQXa
— Izzi Boye (@izziboye) February 26, 2024
Infinix’s E-Color Shift Technology hasn’t just impressed us—it won TrustedReviews’ Best in Show MWC 2024, Yanko Design’s Best of MWC 2024, and Mashable Middle East’s Best of MWC 2024. The technology has quite the public appeal. Depending on how the company chooses to launch the product someday, they could release a few different design patterns in the series so users can pick up their preferred style. We’re likely nowhere close to seeing this concept phone debut officially but GSMArena estimates that we could see a launch in a year or two, which would make us quite the happy campers.
Infinix Aircharge Revolutionizes Wireless Charging
The Infinix E-Color Shift debut was undoubtedly their most eye-catching showcase but there were other, more discrete but significantly more groundbreaking, announcements as well. The Infinix Aircharge concept allows devices to charge wirelessly from a distance of up to 20 cm or 8 inches instead of requiring contact with the charging coil. “Wireless” charging has become something of a trend among smartphones and by enhancing that further, Infinix reminds consumers that we haven’t peaked with wireless technology just yet.
The Infinix Aircharge setup uses multi-coil magnetic resonance and adaptive algorithms, charging at frequencies below 6.78MHz but delivering 7.5W power. According to the press release, “It even works when the transmitting coil and the receiving coil are tilted at an angle of up to 60 degrees.” To increase safety, the device has an end-to-end Resonance and Over Voltage Protection (OVP) Circuit which protects the circuitry even in case of rapid change in the distance between the phone and the charging pad. The Infinix Aircharge design can allow users to continue gaming or streaming content by installing the wireless charging pad underneath their desks where they’re seated.
Playing it Cool with Infix’s Extreme-Temp battery and CoolMax Technology
We have the Infinix color-changing phone, the Infinix Aircharge charging set-up, and now we have the Extreme-Temp Battery. This tech has more of a niche use case as it is relevant mostly to regions that see extremely low temperatures that cause smartphones to fail. The main issue that smartphone batteries face under such circumstances is that the lithium-ion in regular batteries freezes in extremely cold climates, making the device impossible to use. In Infinix’s version, the battery uses biomimetic electrolyte and fusion solid-state technology in its electrodes to function in temperatures as cold as -40°C. It is a purpose-focused piece of technology that has far-reaching uses.
The other CoolMax Technology in discussion also addresses the matter of temperature, but the purpose here is to cool the device down and eliminate the risk of overheating. Demonstrated for a gaming phone that features MediaTek’s Dimensity 9300 chipset with its four Cortex-X4 cores, the CoolMax cooling system works with an internal AI system to reduce the chip’s internal temperature by 10°C. Devices like the ASUS ROG Phone and Red Magic are designed for gaming and come with amped-up internal cooling systems that can help devices maintain their temperatures—the CoolMax system is just another version of this. With a thermo-electric cooler and a cooling fan combined, the CoolMax system does sound quite appealing, however, we’ll have to wait to see it arrive on an actual smartphone.
The Infinix CES 2024 and MWC 2024 presentations have been very impactful this year and there appear to be a lot of ideas milling about within the company. What we need to see more of is how the company narrows the technology down to make more deliverable products that can be put into production for public release. Their concept technology has the capabilities to switch things up in the tech industry, their win as the “Most Innovative Mobile Phone Brand” at CES 2024, stands as a testament to that.