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Connected Objects Health and Wellness

QardioArm puts blood pressure readings on your handset

The Premise. Many people have to monitor their own blood pressures multiple times daily due to various medical conditions. The means having a bulky blood pressure cuff with them, which can be unsightly and to some, embarrassing.

The Product. QardioArm revolutionizes not only the look of a blood pressure cuff, but also the usability and feasibility. The company has created a product that is sleek and doesn’t look out of place in a work bag or purse, while simultaneously creating a product that brings blood pressure monitoring into the digital age. The QardioArm can connect via Bluetooth to your iPhone, where it syncs the data with its secure cloud storage system. You can then share the information with your family or doctor, if you choose.

The Pitch. The video for the $100,000 campaign is professionally shot and features not only the developers but a physician who speaks to the merit of the product. After a brief personal story of how the item came to be, the video shows various stages of product, usage, and puts the QardioArm in a series of shots that are the contents of peoples’ bags, to show it doesn’t look out of place.  The text gives more information and details, as well as a brief few sentences about an upcoming product that is a wearable EKG monitor that will work through the same system.

The Perks. For $85, a backer gets an early bird special price on a QardioArm, and for $160, a backer receives two. However, the company is also marketing to physicians and hospitals, and offers five QardioArms for $400 and 100 for $7500. That shows forward thinking and a great way to reach out to the medical community. The product offers perks for those who have to track their health, but one drawback may be the security these devices provide. By linking to a cloud and to doctor’s offices, there is a chance of hacking and so forth.

The Potential QardioArm follows earlier connected blood pressure monitors such as those from Withings and iHealth that attached directly to the iPhone, but makes improvements in terms of portability and Bluetooth connectivity. Making blood pressure readings more convenient, even consumers who have not been diagnosed with high blood pressure may be incentivized to do so and gain greater insights into their health.