Withings pretty much nailed the activity tracker with the Pulse activity tracker, which features a built-in heart rate sensor that uses pulse oximetry (just like the Galaxy S5). Now, it has updated that product with new sensor capabilities with the Pulse O2. The O2 can also measure blood oxygen level (hence the name) and offers a new bracelet mount for improved wrist-borne wearing. Existing Pulse… Read More
Wearable technology is just about to take off, but we can already take a peek at what’s coming after smartwatches and the like. A team of engineers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Northwestern University have made health monitors in the form of stick-on electronic patches.
The development of the patch was led by professors John A. Rogers and Yonggang Huang. Prof. Rogers was already working on electronics that can be applied directly onto human skin like a temporary tattoo, i.e. no patch base needed. But he went ahead with the patch platform because it allows for the use of commercially available – and therefore cheap and abundant – components, as opposed to the tattoo-like electronics that needed custom capacitors, batteries and other parts.
One of the crucial aspect of the engineers’ patch is the origami-like arrangement of the wires connecting the components, which allows for the patch to be bent without damaging the chips.
The engineers believe that stick-on electronics will make it easier to gather patient data. They also think it will lead to more accurate fitness trackers, and even health monitoring devices that can detect clues about the wearer’s condition even before he or she feels sick. Stick a browser to your face and head to the University of Illinois’ News page for more on this amazing invention.
[via Fast Co. Design]
At $250, TomTom’s Multisport HRM GPS watch is more expensive than its competitors, but that’s because it does so much more.
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When you think about it, it’s odd that wearable tech makers are so obsessed with wristbands. Most wearable tech products currently focus on fitness, and the most popular cardio exercises–biking, running, swimming–are powered by the lower body.
Husband-and-wife team Jimmy Leu and Beatrice Chu created Flyfit, a fitness monitor that is worn on the ankle, after Chu, an avid cyclist, got annoyed that other fitness trackers weren’t accurately recording her workouts. Several of the bestselling fitness trackers, including the Nike Fuelband, aren’t even recommended for cycling.
Flyfit just launched its Kickstarter page today and wants to raise $90,000 by March 25. The early bird package starts at $89 for the first 200 supporters and includes a tracker and two interchangeable ankle bands. Shipment of mass produced Flyfit bands are scheduled for August, while beta test versions will be sent out in May.
Flyfit is one of the latest entrants to the wearable tech market, but its creators want to differentiate by focusing specifically on measuring different leg movements for cycling, swimming, running, or stair climbing. Plus, it will appeal to people who dislike wristbands, which are meant to be worn all day, but tend to get in the way while typing, irritate your skin, or snag on sleeves.
Chu says that she wanted to create an ankle monitor after realizing that her wristbands did not register movements accurately if she gripped her bike’s handlebars too tightly. For avid cyclists, the Flyfit is meant to be a portable alternative to cadence sensors that are installed on bicycle frames. Leu points out that this is especially handy if you use a bike lending service, like Citi Bike in New York City, or workout at the gym. Like a cadence sensor, the Flyfit lets you track distance, speed, and rotations per minute (RPM).
The app connects to an iOS app with Bluetooth 4.0/LE and lets you see your exercise data in real time, as long as you are willing to keep your eye on your smartphone while working out. Flyfit’s creators are working on an Android app and its development will be speeded up if the project reaches its $150,000 stretch goal. They also plan to open Flyfit’s API, add an online racing game so you can compete with your friends, and perhaps integrate it with other apps like Nike Run Keeper.
The tracker consists of a hardware module that is powered by a rechargeable Li-ion battery and interchangeable bands that are currently available in five colors. It has a simple LED panel that lets you check what activity you are tracking and battery life. The Flyfit claims to have an eight-hour battery life with real-time syncing and can run up to a week in off-sync mode.
The Flyfit may remind some people of the infamous ankle monitor worn by certain celebrities, like Lindsay Lohan, while under house arrest. The Flyfit is small and easy to hide, however, and can be worn over or under socks, so I can definitely see it appealing to people who are intrigued by wearable tech but sick of the ubiquitous wristband.
Way late in the fitness tracker game, Sony knew it had to come up with something unique in order to stand out from the growing market. If the Wellograph is designed for suits, the Sony SmartBand is designed for narcissists. Yeah, the device can track if you’ve been walking, how many calories you’ve burned etc. but it can also take note of other things you do, which you can then review on an app. It’s like taking a holistic selfie.
Sony has yet to reveal the specific capabilities of the SmartBand, but its official website indicates that the device “can see if you’ve been walking, running, cycling or travelling by train – and how you’ve slept. It also lets you see photos you’ve taken, music you’ve listened to, games you’ve played and how much you’ve socialized with a friend.”
You can then look back on how you spent your day (or days) through the Lifelog app, which seems to be an Android exclusive. The app presents your day as an interactive timeline. The timeline has icons indicating specific actions, such as when you took a picture or listened to music. Of course, you’ll also be able to view your exercise stats for the day but who cares about that when you can check out the exact hour that you Instagrammed that dramatic picture of fallen leaves last Thursday?
Sony also indicates that the SmartBand will have some sort of audio or even video recording capability: “Special moments need special attention. A great restaurant. An amazing song. A beautiful sunset. Press the Life Bookmark key on your SmartBand and everything going on at that moment will be caught and remembered forever.” Shhh. Did you hear that? That’s the sound of the NSA getting aroused.
Knowing that the SmartBand is designed to track your daily life, Sony wisely made the device waterproof and gave it a discreet look. You can even take the electronics (dubbed the “Core”) itself and insert it into another wristband. The SmartBand will come with two wristbands and I’m sure Sony will only be too happy to sell you more wristbands in all sorts of colors and themes.
Ready to spy on yourself? Tom’s Guide says the SmartBand will be available this spring for €99. That’s about $135 (USD), but I wouldn’t be surprised if it launches at $99 in the United States.
[via Tom’s Guide & Sony]
There’s no shortage of wearable fitness trackers on the market right now, but if you’re looking for something that you can wear from the gym straight to the office, check out the Wellograph. Don’t blame me if you stink up its strap though.
The Wellograph’s main components are its heart rate sensor and 9-axis motion sensor. It can keep track of your heart rate, steps taken, calories burned, hours spent idle and active and even show you how fit you are for your age. It can display these stats – as well as both analog and digital watch faces – on its monochrome 1.26″ LCD…
…or you can sync it with your Bluetooth 4.0-compatible iOS or Android device to see and share more in-depth stats:
The watch can even be set to vibrate to nag you if you haven’t been exercising in a while, although I’m not sure how exactly that works. Overall the Wellograph is obviously being marketed not towards gadget freaks or health buffs, but to corporate types with a modest amount of interest in the latest gizmos and in their health. Hence its formal design and watch alter ego.
Even its charging dock is stylish and cleverly holds the watch up using magnets.
Speaking of charging, the Wellograph’s 240mAh battery should last up to 2 weeks per charge or up to 3 months if it’s always in watch mode. The watch also has a stainless steel and aluminum case and a durable sapphire crystal face. Aside from its leather strap it will supposedly come with a NATO strap as well, which is more suited to the outdoors. Here’s a brief hands-on by Mobilegeeks:
In case you didn’t watch the video, the watch will supposedly be released this April for $320 (USD). If I wanted to track my non-existent regimen, I’d just take selfies in the mirror every now and then. But maybe that’s why I’m not in a suit and tie right now. Wait a minute! I’m at home. I could wear a suit and tie to work! I’m too lazy to look for my tie though.
There are almost as many ways to monitor your fitness these days, as there are ways to get fit. While most hardware trackers come with their own solution to present your (hard-earned) data, some users prefer to keep it elsewhere. If that happens to be MapMyFitness, then good news — there’s full two-way sync for Jawbone UP, as well as Nike FuelBand support. Jawbone’s UP has had API hooks with MapMyFitness for a while, but now workouts etc. can be pushed in either direction, so all those steps can be viewed online (though not your sleep, or manually logged workouts). It’s a similar story with FuelBand, while the Nike+ app and watch have played nice with the services, the wearable was notably absent — until now. Set up is easy, just head to the import section of your account and link them up. Sadly, so easy, you won’t earn any fuel points.
Amiigo, a company that specializes in developing wearable sensors, recently launched a project on Indiegogo. Their product, called the Amiigo Bracelet, is a sweat-proof fitness bracelet and shoe-clip that can measure and track workouts as well as the user’s heart rate and calories burned. The Amiigo bracelet takes it further by also monitoring the user’s blood oxygen levels and skin temperature. What separates the Amiigo bracelet from other fitness bands in the market today is the kind of experience it offers. The company says that the bracelet offers a more personalized fitness tracking experience because it can detect exactly what a user is doing and how the body is responding to the user’s movement. (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Infrascanner 2000 Does Rapid CT Screening , Ricoh Omnidirectional Camera , 
Amiigo, a fitness tracker bracelet, shoe clip plus app that can tell what type of exercise you’re doing thanks to its combination of hardware sensors and gesture-based software algorithms, has kicked off its crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo.
The team behind Amiigo had originally planned to start crowdsourcing funds back in October but delayed the launch of the campaign to work on improving aspects of the technology and to raise a funding round by a more traditional route. This VC funding round (sum undisclosed) was led by a UAE-based fund called Alpha Investments. Amiigo still wants to couple the VC investment with crowdsourced funding as it says the latter is a way to build a community around the product and “find initial beta users”.
Amiigo’s Indiegogo campaign went live early yesterday morning and is already around two-thirds of the way to achieving its $90,000 funding goal. “We’ve had a lot of interest so far!” says Amiigo’s Abe Carter.
Carter says the system now has the ability to discriminate “very subtle differences” between exercise sessions. “To say not only that you are ‘running on the treadmill’ as opposed to ‘the elliptical’, but also that your running is faster today, or choppier or less consistent. This principle holds true with all exercises,” he tells TechCrunch.
“We’re building a feature where the user can actually record different types of running in a practice session, and then see how/where those are turning up during competition or performance. Additionally, by using activity recognition data from friends and/or standardized references, a user can get feedback on how closely his/her ‘run’ resembles that of a friend or some professional athlete. It can be used as a powerful learning tool.”
Carter says Amiigo users will help the system get even more capable — by providing exercise data to broaden and deepen its recognition system. ”Amiigo will provide the initial reference database (full of well over 100 commonly performed exercises) and the recognition system to identify the activities, but it’s the users who have the ability to take it to the next level. That is one of the things we’re most excited about!” he adds.
Sure, your iPhone already keeps track of your work schedules, lunch meetings and Lego creations — isn’t it about time you let it tell you when to go to bed, too? It can, if you’re so inclined — at least when paired with a Larklife fitness band. This wearable pedometer peripheral tracks your activity, sleep patterns and diet with a companion app, nagging you with suggestions on how to eat, sleep and exercise. It’ll even gently buzz you awake with a vibrating alarm, should you try to shirk its suggestions. The $149 Bluetooth band promises to sync with your device in real time, removing the burden of syncing and updating exercise data. It’s also an iOS exclusive, and is fittingly available at Apple retail locations. Determined to do your holiday shopping from your armchair? No worries — Lark’s own website is offering free shipping through December 25th. Read on to scope out the company’s official press release.
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