Microsoft’s wearables wardrobe contains the world’s first pair of wireless charging pants
Microsoft unveiled the world’s first pair of wireless phone-charging trousers at a London Fashion Show on Tuesday. But where do you plug your trousers in?
RT for a chance to win a pair of @ASAUVAGE trousers & a portable #wirelesscharging DC-50 plate http://t.co/zHy0DFPIcj pic.twitter.com/VY3FG4w94N
— Nokia UK (@nokia_uk) June 18, 2014
According pictures tweeted by Nokia UK, the trousers are part of a new collaboration between Microsoft and British fashion designer Adrien Sauvage and are equipped with wireless phone charging capabilities with the Nokia DC-50 wireless charging plate that is placed in a front pocket pocket of the trousers.
Charging the smartphone with inductive charging technology, that utilises an electromagnetic field to transfer electricity between the two objects, the wireless charger can be charged up using a standard Micro USB cable.
Wireless Phone-Charging Trousers
Described as a “wearable chino” by Sauvage, the collaboration started six months ago, according to Business Insider, where the designer began experimenting with wearable technology. The prototype of the phone-charging pants was premièred as it appeared on the runway in Bloomsbury as part of the designer’s spring/summer men’s collection show.
Costing “over $340,” the design aims to blend technology with high fashion, far away from the usual “function over form” designs of most wearable technology to date. “Having something that you could wear without the technology feeling cumbersome was a challenge. It was also difficult to distribute the heat so that the wearer wouldn’t feel like they were in a sauna,” Sauvage added.
Wireless Phone-Charging Trousers
Sadly, these pants will not be machine washable. You can buy them from now for the next three months through Amazon.
“This collaboration is the first full integration of high-end technology and high-end fashion,” says Adam Johnson, Head of UK Marketing at Microsoft Mobile Devices, reports abc NEWS. “The project has been an exploration of other directions that wearable technology may take, with a focus on how our current wireless technology can be integrated into a garment you already wear. We’ll definitely look to continue innovating this space.”
Johnson also adds that the company is not expecting to see a mass-market opportunity for these trousers. “We’re just having a bit of a hack, trying to move the wearable technology concept beyond smart watches. This is a world first.”
