An Android phone made of bamboo will hit the market in China, as demand for style and character fuels a new suite of creatively designed mobile devices.

The lightweight phone, called the "ADzero," is created out of durable, organic bamboo, runs on Google Android and also boasts a "ring flash," intended to light subjects more evenly.

London-based inventor Kieron Scott-Woodhouse, a student at Middlesex University, designed the phone in his spare time because he wanted to create a device that stood out from its counterparts. After posting his designs online to rave reviews, an anonymous technology entrepreneur decided to formally back and produce the bamboo model.

Woodhouse's phone is one of the rare concept phones to become reality. Concept phones pop up throughout the tech industry, from Nokia's flexible, bendable models to phones that show emotion. The cookie-cutter, industrial design of most smartphones can be boring users who want to customize the outsides of their devices as well as the insides.

Woodhouse's creation wasn't purely based on its kitschy design, however, but instead highlights the strong yet flexible nature of bamboo as a sustainable material. Bamboo is fast-growing but requires less water to grow it, giving it a vital role in the growing green products market.

"Bamboo may seem like a strange material to use for a phone, but it's actually extremely strong and very durable, perfect qualities for this kind of application," he said.

The bamboo phone will likely be marketed as a designer phone in high-end retail stores and boutiques geared toward the trendy, fashionable set. The phone is also expected to garner interest from environmentalists and users looking to make their technology "greener."

Solar-powered phones are also in the works, but have a long way to go before hitting the market. In the meantime, environmentally-conscious consumers can rest assured knowing their bamboo phone's casing did minimal damage to the earth.

Concept phones are further proof that mobile technology, for all its advances, is only in its infancy. Users increasingly want phones that express their personal style, and the bamboo phone is only the beginning.

The ADzero will launch later this year in China. Prices and other details are not yet available.