A British company has launched a new service to let you change the
colour of your iPhone 5. It can change the shell to any colour you can
think of, allowing you to ditch the monochrome look without having to
fit it with a bulky external case.
Launched in the UK over the weekend, the new service from
Mendmyi
comes with a variety of options from sending you the parts to do it
yourself, to your sending them your iPhone to be customised. You can
also simply buy a brand new iPhone 5 that's already been coloured.
Prices start at £96.
Based in Haverhill, Suffolk, the company has been colouring iPhone 4
and iPhone 4Ss for around two years, but has now mastered the anodising
technique needed to be able to offer parts for the iPhone 5 and its
metal design.
"It's taken us a while, but we've got there," explained Riki Baker,
the company's founder, to Pocket-lint while showing us the finished
product.
Rather than confuse would-be customers with too many colour choices,
those looking to go colourful will be able to choose from 12 standard
colours, or opt to order their own specific colour requirements. The
standard metal colour finishes include blue, green, pink, bronze and
gold, and use the same anodising technique Apple uses, but to a higher
standard.
"Apple anodises its metal shells to 13 microns, we use a 20 to 30
micron coating. That gives you a tougher finish," Baker says, showing us
his own personal blue anodised iPhone 5 with hardly any scratches on
it. Baker admits that his cases aren't scratchproof, but that they will
stand up to a lot more knocks and bumps in general usage.
It's why the company is offering a black-black version, a shell that
differs from Apple's official black and slate version available in the
shops. It's for those who really want a completely black finish and one
that stays that way.
As with the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S service, users will be able to
order the parts and tackle the replacement themselves, but it will take
some concentration - around two to three hours and a lot of screws.
However, you do get all the tools you need in the £146 package if you
don't want to use your old iPhone 5 shell.
Perhaps more appealing is that you can send your iPhone to the
company for it to be done, with the promise of a speedy turnaround.
That service costs £40 more: £186, if you want a new shell to replace
your current one - it's £96 if you want the company to change your
existing shell. Baker tells us that while plenty have a go at the first
option, many struggle:
"We have quiet a few that struggle to do it, so we tell them to if
they get into trouble you can just put it in the post and we'll get you
fixed up," he explains. Better still, the company only charges you the
difference.
Realising that all this dabbling does break the warranty, the service
comes with the option to have the shell returned so you can swap it
back if you need to go to the Apple Store. But Mendmyi does offer
limited warranties for the first 90 days.
Close up, the shells - which are sourced from China - look great,
emulating Apple's own colourful iPod touch range. Our favourites have to
be the blue and red models, although Baker tells us he expects the gold
to be the most popular.
The oficial black and slate model on the left, Mendmyi's black and black shell on the right
"We didn't offer the iPhone 4 and 4S shells in gold, but a lot of people requested it," he said.
Of course, all this could be irrelevant if Apple makes the new iPhone
5S available in a range of colours. It's something Baker believes will
happen, speculating that Apple used the coloured iPod touch models to
try out the manufacturing process.
Mendmyi's response? It is already looking at offering coloured
buttons - home, power, volume, and the nano SIM tray, as well as
experimenting with patterns and applying logos or messages within the
anodised metal - something Apple is unlikely to do.
Yes, that's right, you could be the proud owner of a zebra-patterned iPhone 5 in the very near future.
