Category: Kids/Babies

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Apparel Kids/Babies Sensors/IoT

Hoko smart comfort monitor keeps your toddler temperate

It would be helpful if parents could be quickly informed if their small child is too hot or cold, especially when engaged in outdoor activities for an extended period of time.

Hoko is a smart, portable comfort monitor that should enable exactly that. One side of Hoko is a small, circular device containing a microprocessor, along with temperature and humidity sensors, that gets placed inside a child’s clothing. That side of the product is attached to a piece of soft fabric with a cute doll on the other side that serves as Hoko’s interface.

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Kids/Babies Networking

Torch router sheds a light on how kids use the Web, can make access flame out

Every day it seems there’s some new service cropping up on the Internet that draws time away from something else. Monitoring the length and safety of screen time of kids online can be a constant battle.

Seeking to shed light on that situation, though, is Torch, a simple router designed to help parents monitor where kids go on the Web and how much time they spend there. Its Web management console includes sections to pause and track data usage by child and search history.

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Connected Objects Kids/Babies Sleep

REMI tracks and trains tykes and toddlers through sleep, helps twitchy parents take a load off

For the first 10 years of a child’s life, making sure they receive adequate amounts of care and attention can be difficult. Often, parents are winging it, slowly learning from the advice given by others and the mistakes they made. Their lack of sleep makes it that much more difficult.

REMI is a Bluetooth-connected sleep alarm looking to kill two birds with one stone by being a device that exists as a sleep tracker for babies and as a sleep trainer for children. By tracking sounds at night, REMI’s sleep tracking capabilities create sets of information parents can use to make informed decisions about their general well-being. As a sleep trainer, it’s designed with a cute, customizable display that lets children know when it’s time to get up in the morning.

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Kids/Babies Wearables

Starling helps babies’ vocabularies shine bright

There have been several wearable devices for babies. But Starling is a newcomer with a twist –- a smart device that tracks the number of words that a baby says and hears each day.

patent-claimedStarling is shaped like a star and can be clipped onto a baby’s clothes or wherever he or she is sitting. The small, patent-pending device has been designed for parents who want to take advantage of research showing that early vocabulary development can impact a child’s success in life because a significant amount of brain development happens before the age of three, according to its Indiegogo campaign.

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Kids/Babies Maker/Development Toys

MakerBloks snaps a fun STEM introduction together for kids

In the United States, introducing STEM topics to kids has faced many challenges in part because the way its done isn’t engaging enough. No one ever said these topics have to be boring, though.

MakerBloks answers the call with electronic components wrapped in bright, colorful casing that easily snap together to make electronic circuits. With the help of a companion tablet app featuring teaching aids and games, children can create a variety of projects like keyboards, burglar alarms, and memory games. Real electronic symbols are used on each block to familiarize children early on so that electronic schematics won’t prove to be a challenge later on. A full kit of 36 MakerBloks and an iPad stand goes for $159, with a ship date slated for November 2015. The campaign is hoping to raise $20,652 by June 16th, 2015.

MakerBloks’ presentation and connection with gaming combine offline and online worlds in a meaningful way, no doubt drawing kids in and keeping them hooked while facilitating a great learning experience at the same time. Keen-eyed readers will see some similarities between MakerBloks and littleBits, another block-based electronics system that is a great step up for the children who master sets like MakerBloks and are seeking more challenging interactions.

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Connected Objects Kids/Babies Toys

Roominate rPower lets kids build app-powered toy structures

Building toys are classic playtime tools for children. Not only are they entertaining, but they also help children develop important spatial skills. Now with phones, however, children are more interested in using apps to play.

With the Roominate rPower, kids can build all kinds of things with the blocks that Roominate offers including all kinds of rooms and buildings. Some of the blocks come equipped with wires embedded into them. An accompanying app hooks up with those wired blocks and lets kids control certain elements of each room, including lights, elevators, windmills, and fans.

The Roominate rPower, featured on the hit show Shark Tank, has managed to marry the kinetic fun of building toys and the innovation of apps. Not only can they get a feel for the basics of building a house, but they also experience the joy of seeing it run. For a complete set, backers can donate $95 with estimated delivery in November 2015. Roominate is looking for a funding goal of $45,000 on Kickstarter.

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Kids/Babies

Lullafi bably sleep aid is the next best thing to creating a cribmobile

Lots of new parents know that sometimes, when their baby won’t go to sleep, they have to try the car. For whatever reason, babies love sleeping in the car. Parents have been known to embark on trips to nowhere in the wee hours in the hopes of quiet slumber.

patent-claimedLullafi has figured out why the car works for getting babies to go to sleep. In order to save parents the hassle of late night driving, Lullafi mimics the soothing effects of the car for babies. This small device clips onto cribs and produces soft vibrations and soothing sounds to get baby to fall asleep. In addition, it has Bluetooth integration which lets parents stream whatever they want to the device, whether it’s ambient noise or their child’s favorite lullaby.

Most parents welcome any solution to restless babies. If Lullafi really performs as promised, it’ll make a welcome addition to the baby product market. Parents interested in this product will need to donate $55 for estimated delivery in September 2015. Lullafi is hoping to raise an ambitious $190,000 with the help of Kickstarter.

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Kids/Babies Maker/Development

Fun with Circuits promises a storybook beginning for engineers in training

Kids are drawn naturally to technology, but oftentimes understand little of how those pixels light up. One way to change that is by stirring the first steps to understanding electronics into a familiar learning took for young ones: the storybook

The Fun With Circuits storybook and basic block-like interactive electronics kit that introduces children to electrical circuit concepts that are fundamental to STEM education. By using storytelling complemented by inviting illustrations, children more easily understand the electrical concepts that underly all types of technology through meaningful context. Kids have to use the colorful circuit components to solve simple puzzles to advance the story. .The developers recommend the product for kids aged 6 through 10 and seek $35,000 by May 9. For $75, one can be shipped by December.

We’ve seen a number of kids’ introductions to electronics and robotics lately. Similar products to Fun With Circuits include the Codie, but there’s something unique about pairing the learning experience with a traditional book that reinforces the idea of being hands-on.

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Cycling Kids/Babies

Swedish Påhoj offers a stroller and bike seat in one for the young on the run

Travelling with a toddler or small child can be quite the chore. Especially when you consider carseats, strollers, and other safety measures that must be taken.

The Swedish-made Påhoj hopes to make transporting kids a bit easier. This combination child bike seat and stroller clips onto bikes, but also has wheels for ground travel. The black seat looks like a much sleeker bike seat with holes in the back for ventilation. It comes equipped with foot rests and a retractable handle that stays out of the way on a bike, but comes in handy for the stroller. Påhoj is lightweight and has an adjustable harness for kids of different sizes.

The only thing missing from Påhoj’s campaign is specification of which ages the product is appropriate for. Other than that, this product will definitely come in handy for parents, especially those in bike-friendly cities and countries. One will cost kr2,260 (~$249) with estimated delivery in December 2015. Påhoj is looking for kr500,000 (~$57,800) in funding on Kickstarter.

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Connected Objects Kids/Babies Video Games

Playbrush uses interactive gaming to get kids to brush their teeth

Many parents with small kids know how hard it can be to convince some children to brush their teeth regularly, and to do it well.

Playbrush is a device that attaches to the end of any conventional toothbrush, transforming the brush into an interactive game controller that can be used in conjunction with iOS (and later Android) mobile devices. When the user starts the app on their smartphone or tablet, the gadget will automatically connect to it via Bluetooth Low Energy (Bluetooth Smart) technology. Playbrush costs $72 and will ship in December. Its maker is hoping to raise $51,887 by May 9.

Playbursh is a device with potential, especially for parents of young kids who either try and avoid brushing altogether or race through the process in just a few seconds. Turning brushing into a fun activity might very well be the trick to get at least some of them to change their ways. That said, it’s impossible to tell from the Kickstarter campaign video just how strong the initial game itself is. If it’s just one weak repetitive game, those kids may very well get bored after a week or two and parents will be left with the same problem they started with. To address this potential problem, the device’s maker plans to add multiple worlds, levels and characters.