In an era before Outlook and Google Calendar, people tended to keep their personal schedules in a pocket planner and group or family calendars on a wall calendar. Smartphones have replaced the former but their larger siblings — tablets — haven’t really replaced the latter. Part of the reason for that is because these calendars should be viewable at a glance, which mean a constant display.
Calou is the closest a digital product has come to recreating the classic wall paper. Like an e-reader such as the Amazon Kindle, t uses e-paper technology to maximize battery life. Calou’s developer, Hamburg-based TECHNIKmanufaktur, says that the iPad-sized product can last two week without being charged. The tablet is encased inside a wooden dish-like enclosure that has a magnetic front for small notes and photographs.
Calou can sync with Google calendar or iCal, and offers a number of views for different family members’ calendars. The layouts, though, are all all business as is the 111-minute video describing the product. Calou runs Version 4.4 of Android and is compatible with Google Play apps.The campaign seeks €10,305 (about $10,900)by April 26th. While Calou offered several early-bird tiers, including a low of €99 (about $105), even the highest price (€409, about $433) is considered a one-time price.
That’s not only pricey compared to many tablets, but even a bit steep for other large e-paper devices that tend to be a rare breed. Calou looks like a helpful tool to wrangle the schedule of a busy family. For its price, though, most families would likely opt for a shared tablet or laptop that could be used for so much more.