Category: Wearables

Categories
Health and Wellness Wearables

Kanega Watch provides emergency connections for seniors on the go

Many traditional personal emergency response devices are limited in that they they traditionally keep seniors tethered to their homes. That’s an outmoded way in the era of powerful wearables.

Kanega Watch was designed to replace traditional emergency alert devices for seniors and doesn’t require a smartphone to operate. As an added plus, it’s more fashionable than many standard watches on the market. The company claims that focus groups have called Kanega a wearable version of OnStar for seniors because it provides discreet support for falls, medication reminders, and a guard against wandering, according to its Kickstarter campaign.

Kanega uses an easy speech interface rather than buttons and also features Bluetooth Smart technology and patent-pending quick-swap batteries that peel away from the watch for charging. The product costs $299 and will ship in February 2016. A separate charging cradle with two additional batteries is included. Replacement batteries are provided free with a  monitoring service that costs $35 to $85 a month depending on the service level chosen.

Kanega mostly relies on emergency notification but there have been other products that focus more on passive monitoring. Lively focuses on monitoring independent seniors in their homes although the company has come out with a wearable.

Categories
Kids/Babies Wearables

Baby Check checks on your baby’s health so you can rest easy

When someone is sick, they tell the doctor what’s wrong. Babies, however, can’t communicate except through crying. So when there’s a problem, it can be hard to tell right away whether it warrants a visit to the doctor or not.

Baby Check is a wearable for babies. Like many adult wearables, it keeps an eye on health by monitoring temperature, sleep, position and medicine administration. It stays on the arm and is made from safe materials meaning that it’s fine for baby to wear all day and night. The information detected by the armband syncs up with an accompanying Android/iOS app. It tracks data over time and allows for high temperature alarms to be set so that parents know exactly when their baby’s fever spikes. Baby Check runs on a rechargeable battery with a life of about one year.

All in all, Baby Check appears to be another great product for helicopter parents, much like the Fever Smart. While temperatures and sleep patterns aren’t essential for parents to keep super close track of, there’s value in being able to keep tabs on sleeping positions as babies aren’t supposed to sleep on their stomachs. Parents can donate $50 for their own with delivery in June 2015. Baby Check is hoping to raise $35,000 in funding on Kickstarter by April 1.

Categories
Fitness Wearables

Stryd makes strides in measuring workout intensity

Most wearable fitness devices do a good job of measuring heart rate, pace and several other metrics. But they typically fail to gauge an extremely important metric for runners: workout intensity.

patent-claimedStryd was designed to accurately measure running power and efficiency while also offering most of the typical features that other fitness wearables and smartwatches provide. Stryd is a small clip-on device that users can attach to a piece of clothing during a workout. The device tracks data and uses Bluetooth Smart technology to subsequently connect with a wide variety of devices, including sports watches, smartphones (Android and iOS), tablets, and even computers. Notably, the device uses patent-pending sensing technologies developed by Princeton engineers. Each unit costs $149 and will ship in September. Its maker set a Kickstarter goal of reaching $50,000 by April 12.

Stryd holds a lot of promise for fitness enthusiasts, but there are far too many players in the fitness wearables market, including Tracky, to declare Stryd a sure thing.

Categories
Wearables

FDA-approved Quell wearable uses stimulation to halt the hurt

Chronic pain is a vicious cycle that can affect one’s mood, energy level, and overall sleep quality. For the millions of people affected by chronic pain, finding the right mix of treatments to alleviate such discomfort, without causing any additional harm to one’s body, is a constant challenge.

Coming to the rescue, Neuromatrix’s Quell is a new wearable designed to target chronic pain all throughout body, no matter the underlying cause. The FDA-approved device works by stimulating neural pathways from the top of the calf using electrodes. This subsequently triggers a natural body-wide response that blocks pain signals and relieves pain in as little as 15 minutes. The system is based on already proven technology and can be connected to a companion iOS app to serve as a sleep monitor as well. A Quell can be had for $199, while additional one month supplies of electrodes go for $29. The $100,000 campaign is looking to ship the device in June 2015.

By creating a drug-free alternative to pain relief, NeuroMatrix has given millions of chronic pain sufferers an affordable and effective medical solution. Technology in general continues to transform the ways in which people view and handle medical treatment, with products like Amiko and VitaStiq being two such examples. This new breed of products are not only helpful to users, but they are helping to redefine how health care is administered throughout the United States.

Categories
Kids/Babies Wearables

Cubi kids’ locator watch doubles as communicator

Every parent wants to know where their child is at all times. That’s what makes child locator watches such an appealing category.

Kids with the Cubi can use the device to send voice messages to other Cubi wearers, as well as to smartphones. When a parent’s phone is connected with Cubi, they can set up an emergency alert message from their phone. When in need, children can press and hold the emergency alert button on Cubi for three seconds and the parent’s phone will receive instant alert messages. The device will feature a dedicated Android and iOS app, and will also features GPS tracking functionality, enabling parents to always know where their kids are. Kids can also build their own network of friends using its NFC technology.

Cubi holds promise, but it is in just too crowded of a category now, with rivals including the Tinitell and FiLIP. Cubi somewhat pales in comparison to FiLIP, which seems more advanced, serving as an actual wearable cell phone. Some parents, however, will like the fact that there is no monthly $10 AT&T cellphone bill with Cubi like there is with FiLIP.

Cubi will ship in July of this year at $150 in either blue, green, orange or pink. Its maker is hoping to raise $100,000 by March 20.

Categories
Apparel Wearables

Tracky motion capture sportswear tracks whole body movements

Wearable fitness devices tend to be limited in what movements and physical activities they can track. Some exercise and fitness enthusiasts would no doubt be interested in smart sportswear that can accurately track all their movements and activities while they are working out.

Tracky motion capture sportswear from the Project Pole company in Bangalore, India, is designed to accomplish exactly that. It is made up of a compression T-shirt and compression pants that are armed with several sensors to record physical movements, along with heart rate, breathing rate and body temperature. The product contains as many as 11 motion sensors combined. Data collected includes biomechanical analysis and can be used for comparative study and performance evaluation. In addition to storing the data in the cloud, Tracky will inform users whether they are meeting set goals while exercising, and also provide tips on how to improve their fitness activities. The sensors transmit the data to a small hub unit that processes the data and then sends it to a mobile app for iOS and Android devices via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Windows support is also planned.

Tracky, like the similar Heddoko, holds promise for a very niche audience of fitness enthusiasts who won’t mind wearing a nearly full body suit while exercising. It’s also impossible to gauge how comfortable it will be from watching an online video—if it’s uncomfortable, there will likely be few takers.

Backers who provide $179 as part of an early bird special, or $199 as part of an Indiegogo special, can expect the product in September of this year. The latter price is 20 percent less than the expected retail price. Project Pole is hoping to raise $30,000 for the campaign by March 13.

Categories
Health and Wellness Wearables

Electrode-studded InBody Band quantifies the self

Every new fitness band released to the market tries to one up everything else by including something that would make it worthwhile for someone who is considering wearing one day in and day out. The InBody Band does just that by taking the familiar and adding four electrodes in order to measure the body’s composition. By doing so, a more complete picture of the body can be created to more accurately inform users of their needs.

The four electrodes work in tandem by measuring bioelectrical impedance, which is often used to measure the body’s water composition, from which fat and muscle content can be derived. Together with the ability to track heart rate, steps taken, and sleep, the InBody Band is able to create a very detailed picture of the body over a period of time. In addition, it can also create call and SMS notifications for added convenience.

The InBody Band is extremely versatile, and able to take cues from other products that measure body composition like the MyBiody Balance sensor in order to create a more powerful wearable system. Although the iOS/Android app is able to sync to a user’s contact list and compare stats with others, it unfortunately doesn’t interface with either of the platform’s health apps, leaving the wealth of information stuck within the app. The product’s lack of size options and interchangeable bands may turn others off, as well. The product does make an attempt at differentiation, but it may not be enough to make a splash.

The $159 InBody Band is estimated to ship in March of this year if the campaign reaches its goal of $50,000 by March 13.

Categories
Sensors/IoT Wearables

Scarab air pollutant detector warns you about invisible threats

Air pollution continues to be a major problem, especially in urban areas of the United States. Therefore, it would be nice to be informed if there are invisible toxins in the air. The Scarab from Dallas startup Amulet Corp is a multi-sensor, wearable sensor device that does exactly that.

The small, oval device can detect more than 16 invisible threats in the air, including ozone, magnetic fields and nitrogen dioxide. It comes in a choice of white or black, and can be easily clipped to everyday items such as backpacks, baby strollers, belts and purses.

Scarab’s 16 on-board sensors continuously monitor the environment and communicate local conditions and hidden dangers to the user’s smartphone via Bluetooth LE. An accompanying app can be downloaded for Android and iOS devices. Backers who pledge $129 will get a “benchmark” version of Scarab in matte black or glossy white when it ships in August. Backers who pledge $175 will get a “premium” SKU of the device styled as a Scarab amulet etched with an Egyptian-style Scarab beetle logo. Its maker is hoping to raise $100,000 on Kickstarter.

The device holds promise. But its application stands to appeal to a much narrower consumer base than wearables that track fitness. Yet Scarab still faces potential competition from wearable environmental trackers like the TZOA. If consumers don’t already have a carbon monoxide detector in their homes, the device could become a life saver. Also potentially useful are its noise level detection circuit (especially if the user lives in an urban area) and UV index sensor (especially if the user is planning to spend a few hours at the beach).

Categories
Sensors/IoT Wearables

Back to the Backers: Tempi wearable thermometer

Back in October 2014, Backerjack covered Tempi. Unfortunately, it was a losing battle as it eventually proclaimed defeat. Defiantly, Tempi creator Venicipio has decided to give it another go around, hoping for success this time.

Tempi is a smart, wearable thermostat that can be used to monitor the temperature in multiple locations at once using Bluetooth LE, an upgrade from the previous campaign’s model that could only monitor one. As such, the product has inherent limits in range, but confusingly still boasts being able to report back temperatures even on the go. A nine month battery helps Tempi recognize temperatures from -22°F to 185°F for a while. A backing of $30 will get those interested a Tempi in Silver or Red, to be shipped in Marh 2015. The campaign’s current goal of $45,000 is $5,000 less than the original campaign’s $50,000 goal.

Tempi may have experienced its initial failure because of just how unexciting it is. Granted, temperature readings are good information to have, but to purchase an entirely separate product to do so seems a bit excessive. The creators behind it have added a few more bells and whistles, but in the end it doesn’t seem that much attractive.

Categories
Wearables

V1bes alerts you to stress so you can be at your best

Excessive stress can impact a person’s health and even bring on sickness and depression. Keeping stress under control is one of the best ways to maintain optimum health. V1bes was created to help people to become more conscious of their stress levels so that they can take appropriate steps to alleviate their anxiety.

The biosensor is worn on the index finger and measures stress-influencing factors such as brainwaves, heart rate, and electromagnetic pollution. That information then gets translated to useful advice and training programs. The product is a smart device that learns about the user through consistent use and works in conjunction with their smartphone and personal cloud. Various apps include the thrill of competition through the biceps app, vibe “compatibility” between a couple, or explore how music changes one’s mood.

Not sure that having one’s personal health info stored in a cloud is the best idea, but V1bes is certainly an interesting product. A few other biosensor items of interest include Moodmetric, and Ear-O-Smart. This product seeks to raise $500 by February 11, 2015. For $199, early bird backers get one product with an expected delivery of September 2015.