Dear diary, it's been 112 days since WHO declared a coronavirus pandemic: sales plummeted across nearly every industry, many economies are verging on collapse, and LG somehow still hasn't given up on smartphones. Stranger still, Samsung keeps reemerging from its lab with a new quirky contraption every other day.
Today, it launched something called a “UV Sterilizer” in Thailand, touting it as an antibacterial gadget that can charge a smartphone, smartwatch, or a pair of wireless earbuds while simultaneously disinfecting them. It's also meant to easily clean other small objects such as sunglasses. The curious product is priced at 1,590 baht, which comes down to just over $50, and is already on sale in the Far Eastern country. There's no telling whether this contraption will eventually make its way to more markets, though even Samsung is quick to acknowledge cheaper methods of cleaning a smartphone.
No end to Samsung's inventive gadgets
The UV Sterilizer's debut comes four months following the launch of a full-fledged device sanitization service Samsung introduced in response to the original COVID-19 outbreak. Since then, the Seoul-based conglomerate donated tens of millions of dollars to coronavirus relief efforts across the planet, in addition to unveiling a wide range of topical and innovative technologies in the vein of the UV sterilizer. A smartwatch app teaching hand hygiene, to name another one example.
As for the gadget at hand, it comes in the form of a relatively inconspicuous case measuring in at 228mm x 128mm x 49mm. Some level of IFTTT support appears to be part of the package as well. Samsung has so far unveiled only a white variant of this niche product.
