Motorists have been in a state of shock and awe after seeing a BMW car that can change colour.
Yes, we are really living in the future, folks.
The car was spotted driving about and changed colour between white and black whilst reversing, making the change almost seamlessly.
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It’s dead satisfying to watch - though a little weird - if you haven’t already seen the video.
Anyway, this is a feature of the BMW iX Flow called E Ink, and the BMW website calls it a ‘groundbreaking invention’.
As well as – they say – being efficient because it means that the car can either retain heat or reflect it, depending on the weather, they also say that the car has 200 features that ‘are changing how we live, work, play, and think about what’s possible’.
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The website reads: “With the BMW iX Flow featuring E Ink, the BMW Group offers a completely new way of changing the vehicle's appearance in line with the driver's aesthetic preferences, the environmental conditions or even functional requirements.
“The technology thus offers unprecedented potential for personalisation in the area of exterior design, as the surface of the BMW iX Flow featuring E Ink can vary its shade at the driver’s prompting.”
Frank Weber, one of BMW’s development board members, added: “Digital experiences won't just be limited to displays in the future. There will be more and more melding of the real and virtual. With the BMW iX Flow, we are bringing the car body to life.”
How does it work though, eh?
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Well, according to the website – again – it’s down to a ‘specially developed body wrap’ that is stimulated by electrical signals, which bring different pigments to the surface and cause the car to take on a different colour.
They say it’s similar to how an e-reader works, some of which also use E-Ink.
For a more in-depth explanation, they said: “The surface coating of the BMW iX Flow featuring E Ink contains many millions of microcapsules, with a diameter equivalent to the thickness of a single human hair.
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“Each of these microcapsules contains negatively charged white pigments and positively charged black pigments.
“Depending on the chosen setting, stimulation by means of an electrical field causes either the white or the black pigments to collect at the surface of the microcapsule, giving the car body the desired shade.”
Anyway, it’s fair to say that people who have seen the original video are impressed.
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One person commented: “I love this car #BMW changing colours, I’m impressed.”
Another said: “THIS IS SO DOPE WTF.”
A third said: “That’s the coolest thing ever.”
OK, there’s also a lot of people saying that it would be the ideal car to commit a crime in, but maybe they’re just missing the point.
Tom Wood