World's first color-changing guitar aims to "break all of the rules"

E Ink and Cream Guitars have introduced the first-ever guitar that can dynamically change colors, allowing any player to uniquely customize their instrument to suit their music and mood. It's a bold and exciting move by the electronic-ink pioneers better known for their more low-key readers and displays.

The Cream Voltage range was already anything but a wallflower, but even the brightest, sparkliest axe pales in comparison to the fluid, shifting body of the Voltage DaVinci, which was launched at The NAMM Show this week.

“We had the idea to break all the rules of the traditional guitar,” said Luis Ortiz, CEO, Cream Guitars. “We’ve redesigned every part of an electric guitar to broaden and enhance the playing experience. Through our innovative collaboration with E Ink, we are providing artists a level of creativity that extends well beyond anything available in today’s market.”

You can see Ortiz with the DaVinci in this clip below.

It's the latest eye-catching move from Taiwan's E Ink, which has led the electrophoretic display market with its low-energy electronic paper technology. This week it also unveiled its new eco-friendly, solar-powered screens in bus stops around Taipei. It already supplies its screens across a wide range of consumer gadgets, from watches to phones and, of course, e-readers like Amazon's Kindle.

It has also delivered some quirky gadgets – like this Hemingwrite smart typewriter – as well as the 2022 world first, BMW's iX Flow, featuring an E Ink film coating on the car's exterior that enables it to cycle through colors and patterns.

The Voltage DaVinci guitar incorporates E Ink's Prism 3 ePaper, which is equipped with seven different colors that can be programmed or triggered by the player on-the-go. And to tone it down a notch, the guitar can display a static single shade.

The Prism 3 'paper' blends digital and traditional in a thin, light, durable and low-power material controlled by driving waveform tech. This makes it an ideal vehicle for creative self-expression on something like a guitar from Cream – a company known for its loud-and-proud designs.

“Cream Guitars is at the forefront of instrument design, and this collaboration marks a significant milestone in their commitment to pushing the boundaries of what is possible,” said Pete Valianatos, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, E Ink. "We are proud to work with them to create an instrument that not only sounds great but makes a visual statement as powerful as their music."

Late last year, E Ink collaborated with Belgian leather goods company Delvaux, debuting four different Prism 3 color-changing capsule handbags at Paris Fashion Week. Creating these was no mean feat, as applying a flexible, thin layer to textiles is challenging. A limited edition set of 100 of these Helios bags will be up for sale some time in 2025, though we can only imagine the price tag.

You can check out the production of those bags in the video below.

Source: E Ink