--- description: Find out why Lexon Oblio is one of the best inventions of 2020. title: Lexon Oblio: The 100 Best Inventions of 2020 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc37a65cf0e0dd02/698a14434ee2627b223181cf/best-inventions-of-2020-Oblio-8.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 19, 2020 # A Cleaner Charge Lexon Oblio by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  Courtesy Cell phones can be covered with more than 17,000 bacterial gene copies—10 times as much bacteria as the average toilet seat, one study found. Oblio solves that problem and charges your device at the same time. The wireless charging station resembles a stylish vase and uses UVC light to sanitize your phone, killing 99% of the bacteria on its surface in just 20 minutes. The device ($80) has not yet been tested for effectiveness against COVID-19, but even so, it sold out soon after it became commercially available in the U.S. over the summer. _—Madeleine Carlisle_ **Buy now:** [Lexon Oblio](https://lexon-design.com/us/product/oblio/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2020/5911338/lexon-oblio/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2020/5911338/lexon-oblio/"},"headline":"A Cleaner Charge","datePublished":"2020-11-19T01:32:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T23:45:37.215Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2020/5911338/lexon-oblio/","keywords":["list","franchise","best inventions","Best Inventions 2020"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc37a65cf0e0dd02/698a14434ee2627b223181cf/best-inventions-of-2020-Oblio-8.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc37a65cf0e0dd02/698a14434ee2627b223181cf/best-inventions-of-2020-Oblio-8.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2020/5911338/lexon-oblio/","name":"A Cleaner Charge"}}]}] ```