CROWDFUNDING NEWS – BAD Wrap is a totally new way to protect your tech gear when you’re traveling. It’s basically a cover that provides instant, padded, form-fitting protection, which holds its shape without any Velcro, zippers, snaps, or straps.
Is it magic? Nope, it uses 100% aluminum wires inside the cover that can bend and form around the object that you want to protect. When I asked how many times you can bend and unbend the cover, they answered:
Short answer: The wires inside are 100% pure aluminum, often called ‘dead soft’ aluminum or armature wire. The wire frame is cycle tested hundreds of times.
Long answer: In case you want to get really nitty gritty, the way it works is actually really interesting:
When you bend dead soft aluminum, it becomes imperceptibly stiffer in the exact point where it was bent (talking molecular level). When you go to bend it in the same spot again, it will actually bend ever so slightly next where it was previously bent. So, even if you bend it in the same exact way as before, it will not bend in the exact same way on a molecular level. You won’t wear out the wire, because you are not bending the same molecules over and over. 100% aluminum wire becomes stronger where it is bent, a hardening process, instead of weaker. Another way to think about this is to consider how aluminum cans can be recycled endlessly! Same thing.
When aluminum is mixed to make composite metals it becomes very strong and can be springy. The other materials in the composite prefer to bend where they have bent before- it becomes a weak spot. Think about a paper clip, it’s easy to bend back in forth in the same spot. Therefore, it breaks relatively quickly as it becomes weaker and weaker where it is bent.
We use metals for stiffness and for the springy nature often, making pure aluminum relatively uncommon and somewhat hard to find. However, it’s a very neat material in its native form.
On a testing note, we did test to failure on this product. If you use brute force to stress one finite spot of the BAD Wrap wire and cycle it, it can eventually break. We tested to failure, so we were able to damage the wire with long-winded, deliberate attempts. However, the broken spot was unperceivable in both look and performance of the product. The outer perimeter wire is actually doubled up, and that’s the most important wire in the BAD Wrap freezing in place when wrapped around something. Even beyond the cycle testing, the product continues to perform wonderfully.
Why do I like it?
I like the BAD Wrap because it’s a reusable, transformable cover that you can wrap around your gear to keep it safe in your bag, luggage, etc. And if that’s not enough, you can fold it into a useable accessory for your gear, like a tablet stand!
Where can I find more info?
The BAD Wrap campaign ends on 7/15/21 and they are still working towards their funding goal of $48,500. You can pre-order a BAD Wrap starting at $18. After the BAD Wrap campaign ends, rewards are estimated to start shipping in December 2021. Visit their Kickstarter page for all the details.
