Bamboo, not plastic.

What a bamboo NFC card actually is

It is a card cut from bamboo rather than moulded from plastic, with the name and the handle laser-engraved into the surface instead of printed on top of it. The chip and the QR work exactly as they do on the plastic card: the same profile behind it, the same tap, the same scan for the phones that will not tap.

The difference is in the hand. Bamboo has a grain, it is warmer than plastic to hold, and the engraving is slightly recessed, so the card reads as something made rather than something printed. People turn it over. That is most of the argument for it.

Engraved, not printed

Engraving removes material; printing adds it. A printed surface can scuff off a card that lives in a pocket, and on a light material it shows every mark. An engraved line is part of the card, so it looks the same after a year in a wallet as it did in the envelope. The trade is that engraving is monochrome: it cannot carry a full-colour logo the way the plastic card can.

Bamboo, plastic or metal

All three do the same job and carry the same profile. Plastic at £24 is the one to buy if the card is a tool rather than a statement, and it is the only one that takes a full-colour design. Bamboo at £35 is the middle: warmer than plastic, lighter than metal, and the one people comment on without it being showy. Metal at £59 is heavier than anyone expects and behaves like a business decision.

If you are buying one card, the material is a matter of taste. If you are buying for a crew, the plastic team pack is the one that keeps the whole set consistent, and the individual materials are better kept for the people who hand cards to customers.

Common questions

Does bamboo affect the tap?

No. The chip sits inside the card and bamboo is not metal, so nothing interferes with it. The QR is engraved on the back for the phones that will not tap.

Will it survive a pocket?

It is a wood product, so it will mark where plastic would scratch and metal would not. The engraving does not wear off, because it is cut into the card rather than sitting on it.

Can I put a full-colour logo on it?

Not on bamboo. Engraving is one tone. If the logo has to be in colour, that is the plastic card, and the Design Studio will show you both before you decide.

What if I change my number afterwards?

Nothing happens to the card. It points at your profile, not at a number, so you change the profile once and the card in somebody else's wallet is correct again.