Super Copy of Great Power Technology

People are very curious about this new ring phone and have raised many questions.

"A ring phone? What's that? I've never heard of it before."

"I've used smartphones for so many years, including flat screen, foldable, and flexible screen models, but this is the first time I've ever heard of a ring phone."

"A ring phone, judging from the name, refers to a phone shaped like a ring, right? How could such a small device possibly fit a battery, chip, baseband, and display?"

……

"Our project to develop a ring phone was inspired by next-generation brain-computer interface (BCI) technology. In traditional smartphones, the screen is an essential component for displaying information and images and for finger touch operations. However, in BCI devices, image and operation signals can be transmitted entirely through the body's neural signals. Moreover, compared to a phone screen, the images transmitted by neural signals are more realistic, more three-dimensional, have higher resolution, more precise operation feedback, and lower latency. Given this, why not use the mature neural signal transducers used in BCIs to replace the traditional smartphone touch screen and develop a new form of smartphone without a screen?"

"Of course, at the very beginning, we didn't develop a ring phone. Instead, we set the form factor of the new phone as a wristwatch. Compared to a ring, a wristwatch is larger and can easily integrate components such as a battery, chip, baseband, neural signal transducer, and data acquisition device to form a fully functional phone. As early as six months ago, our wristwatch phone had been developed and was just waiting for mass production and market launch. Just before the product was launched, Ruida Research Institute suddenly provided us with a biochip fabrication technology. Compared with traditional semiconductor chips, biochips have many advantages such as small size, light weight, and low energy consumption. They can even use the bioelectricity on the surface of the human body as an energy source to complete their work, making them the optimal solution for making wearable devices."

"After seeing information about biochip technology, our R&D team immediately had the idea of ​​applying this technology to further reduce the size of new mobile phones and develop a groundbreaking mobile phone product. After half a year of hard work by our R&D team, this ring phone was born. It weighs only 12 grams, about the same as a large ring. Users only need to wear the ring phone on any finger to project a mobile phone interface into their minds, which they can see whether their eyes are open or closed. Images and sounds are transmitted to the brain through neural signals, making it discreet and secure, so there is no longer any fear of being spied on while operating the phone. Operating the phone, making calls, and other interactive actions are all completed through thought. Even the photo and video functions are completed by collecting video signals seen by the user's eyes. The only slight inconvenience is that the ring phone does not have a front-facing camera like traditional mobile phones, so it cannot take selfies. During video chats, it is difficult for the other party to see your face, making the interactive experience a bit strange."

Luo Na, the newly appointed general manager of Ruida Technology, enthusiastically introduced the amazing ring phone. While speaking, she removed a black ring from her middle finger and showed it to everyone. Clearly, the ring she was wearing was the latest product in their ring phone line. Given how novel and futuristic this ring phone seemed, everyone assumed it was still in the early stages of development and far from mass production and market launch. Unexpectedly, Luo Na produced a sample of the ring phone. Clearly, the ring phone's development was nearing completion, having entered the prototype and testing phase, and mass production and sales were not far off.

The attendees were very curious about this novel ring phone and wanted to hold it in their hands to test it themselves and see how the phone screen projected onto their minds. So the sample ring phone circulated among the company executives, satisfying everyone's curiosity, before finally returning to Rona's hands.

Qiao Ruida was also surprised by the appearance of the ring phone. This completely new type of phone had never appeared in any previous science fiction works, nor was it a product copied using his "golden finger." Rather, it was a product newly developed by Ruida Technology's R&D team by integrating the company's existing advanced technologies. This had a significant impact on Qiao Ruida. Previously, all of Ruida Group's R&D work relied entirely on Qiao Ruida's "golden finger," and all technological products were simply copied and analyzed. The existence of a large R&D department and numerous R&D personnel was entirely to conceal the "golden finger" and confuse the public. It seems that in the future, they need to increase investment in R&D and focus on training R&D personnel. Perhaps one day, a genius researcher will have a flash of inspiration and develop another best-selling product for the company.

"The ring phone is amazing, the idea is bold, and the product functions are basically complete. It's a very promising product. As for video calls, the problem of not being able to see the person can be easily solved by using an external Bluetooth camera, or simply by placing a mirror in front of you. What I'm curious about is the production cost of such a ring phone. Whether it can completely replace traditional smartphones depends heavily on its price."

When the topic turned to cost, Luo Na's expression subtly changed, and her voice softened. "Currently, biochip manufacturing technology is not yet mature, with a yield rate barely reaching 25%. The high prices of raw materials and processing equipment result in a high cost per chip. This tiny ring phone integrates multiple biochips, hence the relatively high production cost. In the current small-batch trial production in the lab, the cost of one ring phone is controlled at around 100,000 yuan. In the future, when we move to large-scale mass production, the cost per unit can be significantly reduced to around 30,000 to 40,000 yuan."

"The manufacturing cost of a ring phone alone is as high as 30,000 to 40,000 yuan, not even including the initial R&D investment. The retail price must be 50,000 yuan per phone to avoid losses. Such an expensive phone can only be positioned as a high-end product, or even a luxury item. I wonder how many people can afford it."

"In the early stages of technology popularization, a higher price is normal. With its novel functions and unique design, the ring phone might become a trendy item of the new era, a symbol of status and prestige, and there will certainly be no shortage of wealthy users willing to pay for it. In another year or two, as biochip production technology gradually improves and the yield rate continues to increase, the production cost of the ring phone will definitely be significantly reduced. At that time, the price will drop, sales will surge, and it will become possible for it to completely replace existing smartphones." (End of Chapter)