A NEW device claimed to block up to 99 per cent of radiation emitted by mobile phones has been dismissed as all but useless by local scientists.
About 8,000 Wave Shields have been sold in Hong Kong since they were launched a week ago, but experts say the $128 gadget will do little, if anything, to reduce the risk of ailments which could be linked to phone radiation.
Their comments back the findings of Britain's Consumers Association, which told shoppers not to waste their money on radiation 'shields' after testing a range of similar products in April.
The makers of Wave Shield, designed to be stuck on the ear piece of a phone, say the product has been tested by independent laboratories in the US and Japan and proven to 'block up to 99 per cent of electromagnetic radiation'.
Ian Shelmerdine, chief executive of the Asian distributor, Wave Shield Ltd, said the patch was made of a 'secret' material - a treated cloth with metal inside it.
He said it was the same material used to coat Stealth bombers. Depending on the model of phone, between 50 and 97 per cent of radiation was stopped from entering a user's ear, which he said was vital in preventing possible damage from electromagnetic waves.