An inventor has created the mug tea drinkers have been dreaming of for generations - one that keeps your drink hot as you want it.
Thomas Gostelow has designed the world’s first fine china heated smart mug.
The Glowstone looks and feels like any other mug but it automatically keeps drinks at the perfect temperature.
Thomas, from Chorlton, in Manchester, now hopes a crowdfunding campaign will get his prototypes into full production and hopes to create jobs for skilled local engineers.
The product designer first came up with the idea two years ago after buying a coffee machine, reports the MEN.
He said: “The coffee tasted great and the process of brewing meant it came out at the ideal temperature, but that only lasted for the first couple of sips.
"In addition, I would get distracted and forget about it until it went cold.
“I tried heated metal and plastic mugs but didn’t like how they changed the taste. I couldn’t find a heated fine china mug anywhere so I decided to invent one.”
A tiny heater, wirelessly recharged batteries and electronics are hidden inside the dishwasher proof smart mug.
It can be wirelessly recharged by placing it onto a Qi coaster, which can also charge smart phones.
The mug then switches off when it detects that the last sip has gone or after 30 minutes.
Thomas spent 18 months sourcing parts, developing the electronics and refining the idea with friends and family before making a prototype.
He said: “The results were better than expected. Not only was it keeping my drinks hot, they seemed to taste better. I don’t really enjoy tea and coffee any more out of a normal mug.
“We’re onto version four and while we’ve added useful features, we’ve kept it simple and made the mug fully automatic. All you have to do is charge it, the mug does everything else, apart from wash itself.”
Thomas has now launched a Kickstarter campaign where backers can pre-order mugs for shipment in time for Christmas.
He said: “Having pre-orders through Kickstarter means that our backers will benefit from our mugs at a lower price as they pay up front - all we need is enough of them.”
For details visit www.glowstone.tech