There have been several mugs for keeping coffee hot touted on crowdsourcing sites in recent months. But Ember goes a couple of steps further than a device like the Nano Heated Wireless Mug, which promises to keep coffee hot for 45 minutes.
Ember is a temperature-controlled travel mug that quickly cools off coffee or tea that’s too hot. It then keeps the liquid at the temperature its user chooses for two hours when on the go or all day when used with the included, cordless charging coaster, according to its Indiegogo campaign. Its patented microprocessor-controlled heating system works with a network of sensors to accomplish that.
The mug will work with any other liquid contents also, including soup, and also keeps iced drinks cool in the same way that a standard travel mug does. The temperature can be adjusted using Ember’s Android or iOS app.
But the enhanced technology doesn’t come cheap. Ember’s future retail price is $149, although early bird backers can get one for $129. It’s shipping in April. Ember’s makers are looking to raise $50,000 by Nov. 20.
If Ember indeed works as promised, there’s a large potential market for the mug. Minor negatives include the fact that it can only connect to Android and iOS mobile devices that have Bluetooth v4.0 or later. Ember also lacks the ability to actually brew coffee on the go, which devices including the Hey Joe Coffee Mug can do.