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New gun folds up to look like a cellphone
Kaila White, The Republic | azcentral.com 1:05 p.m. MST March 30, 2016
A Minnesota company is making national headlines for a gun that's not even on the market yet. It brings a whole new meaning to the term "concealed carry." The weapon is designed to look just like a cell phone. VPC
It's about the size of a Samsung Galaxy and it even has a clip to wear it on your belt like a dad.
But with one click, it opens and is ready to fire.
Called Ideal Conceal, the gun is a double-barreled .380 caliber pistol that folds up to look just like a smartphone.
Creator Kirk Kjellberg has a concealed carry permit and said he got the idea when he was walking through a restaurant and a young boy saw his pistol.
"This little kid says, 'Mommy, Mommy, that man's got a gun,' so the whole restaurant looks at you like you're about to shoot the place up," he explained to CNNMoney. "So I thought to myself there's got to be another way to be able to carry without bothering other people."
His Minnesota company plans to have a prototype by the end of May for the NRA's annual meeting in Louisville and to sell the guns for $395 later this year, according to the website.
"The idea for Ideal Conceal follows the present-day demand for handguns that people can carry on a day-to-day basis, in a manner that makes carrying a gun easy to do. From soccer moms to professionals of every type, this gun allows you the option of not being a victim," the website reads.
Like any pocket pistol, the gun is designed for close-range shooting.
The invention already has its own Snopes.com page to debunk claims that criminals invented the phone to trick police.
"We totally support law enforcement. Further, we would never promote or make a product for ambushing anyone, let alone police. In fact we have received MANY requests from Law Enforcement to purchase this weapon for undercover and off duty officers," Ideal Conceal told Snopes.
However, Bill Johnson, executive director and general counsel for the National Association of Police Organizations, told CNN Money, "In general, the concept of any kind of weapon that's disguised, so that it's not apparent that it's a weapon, would be cause for concern."
It's nowhere near the first time a gun has been disguised as a common item.
A 1985 study found that "the most common type of disguised firearm is the pen gun, a term applied to a weapon that is disguised to look like a pen or to any single-shot firing device of tubular appearance. Another popular disguised weapon, the cane gun, contains a hollow metal barrel. It comes in various forms, including the tire-iron shotgun or the handlebar gun."