If you are into technology and are looking for some very special artwork to enhance your office walls, then look no further than the amazing work of GRID Frame Studio.
Focused on delivering classic electronic products like phones, portable gaming cosnoles and even smart watches, the company disassembles the device with an ifixit level of care, preserving the sensitive componentry that powered the amazing experiences of our past.
What I really love and enjoy is the painstaking time taken to understand each one of the components, arrange it and label it within the frame. Items like the camera modules, main board, headphone socket, vibration motor, are all positioned alongside the device’s main chassis and from and rear shell.
For many customers, it’s a fascinating glimpse inside the hardware for the first time, helping you appreciate the unbelievable technology that powers the hardware we use, or previously used and have fond memories of.
Having the ability to select one design to review, I selected the iPhone 4S and this also happens to be at the top of their best-selling list.
Personally, my first experience with a new Apple device was the iPod touch, and with a capacitive touch display, I remember thinking just how amazingly responsive and game-changing it was going to be. It’s important to remember just how limited these devices were at the time, but that didn’t stop us from falling in love with how innovative they were, compared to anything else we’d touched before.
Even once the first iPhone arrived in Australia, there was no App Store available and the functions on offer were restricted to calls and messages, browsing the web, playing music and taking photos. At the time, having 3-4 devices in one was a massive step forward to dedicated devices and this one could fit in your pocket.
By the time I was looking for a replacement, the iPhone 4S was released and that’s almost 10 years ago now, way back in October 2011. I loved the industrial design Apple was using, it really appealed to me with flat sides and smaller radius to the corners. Strangely enough, that design has circled back around and Apple’s latest iPhone 12 has serious similarities, albeit quite a lot larger now.
Given that I look back at the iPhone 4S so fondly, it was the only choice for me, but there are plenty of alternatives which we’ll get to in a minute.
The solid black frame really adds to the feeling of quality in this product, serving as a great compliment to the black components and black fonts. I do hope they start to offer white or even timber-finish as a frame choice in the future, as so people have already committed to that frame style in their home and will want this to match.
If you look closely, you’ll see the dimensions of the device are also provided, making this artwork feel like an engineering schematic or technical drawing of the device, straight from Cupertino.
This could easily find itself in pride place on a shelf in your home or office, or you can use the embedded frame hooks in the rear of the frame to hang it. Alternatively, you could opt to run some 3M velcro to fasten it to your wall. However you do it, the artwork will absolutely be a conversation starter with any visitors.
Below is a gallery of photos showing close-ups of the iPhone 4S in its frame.
My favourite touch is the quote by Steve Jobs, found in the bottom left-hand corner. In the case of the 4S, it reads:
“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future”.
Steve Jobs.
GRID Studio offers artworks of a growing list of devices including the following devices for a very affordable price. Whether it’s for yourself, for a friend’s birthday, or even for something special at Christmas time, you can choose from the following list of artwork:
- iPhone 1
- iPod Touch
- iPhone 3G
- iPhone 3GS
- iPhone 4
- iPhone 4S
- iPhone 5
- iPhone 5S
- iPhone 6
- iPhone 7
- iPhone 8
- iPhone X
- Watch 1
- Nokia E71
- BlackBerry Bold 9000
- Sony PSP 1000
- Game Boy Pocket
GRID Studio has developed a great FAQ section of their website, which answers many questions you’re likely to have.
A simple question around the practicality of having a battery stored in the frame is addressed here. While a dimensionally correct battery module is included in the frame, it’s not actually a real battery, which completely removes any safety concerns with a lithium-ion battery that may be exposed to a range of temperatures.
While there’s a great array of framed devices to choose from, there is one, very unique item – the Customised Project. Right now, the company is showcasing a one-off project for a customer, which suggests they’re open to doing more custom work in the future, for the right price. I suspect this could be very popular, despite the premium cost, given those who love tech, often fall in love with our technology and want to treasure their memory, long after their usable life.
Make sure you head to http://gridstudio.cc and check out their products.
