The modular smartphone dream feels like ancient history at this point. Google’s ambitious Project ARA never made it to market, and LG’s modular G5 experiment crashed and burned so spectacularly that most manufacturers decided swappable phone components were a dead end. Yet somehow, the idea of customizing your device with interchangeable parts refuses to completely disappear.

Despite the technical nightmares and market failures, designers keep returning to the modular concept because the core appeal remains undeniable. Being able to swap out phone components for different functionality sounds amazing in theory, even if reality keeps proving otherwise. The latest attempt comes from the H-One Pro concept, which takes a more focused approach to modularity.