The world's biggest technology expo, International CES in Las Vegas, was last week packed with devices designed to transform their wearers into fitter, leaner, more competitive, and yet calmer individuals.
From measuring stress levels to testing the amount of oxygen in your blood, incoming fitness gadgets run the gamut from lifestyle-friendly to medically important, and they now come in a smaller and sometimes unusual forms, from cutlery to jewellery.
One of the biggest advances in many fitness devices at CES this year saw devices able to record a user's heart rate without the need for an uncomfortable chest strap.
A headband dubbed Spree, for example, houses a device with an LED light that sits on the wearer's forehead and measures heart rate and body temperature, as well as distance, speed and steps taken.
"This one device can measure a lot of elements just by shining a light on to the skin,'' Hothead Technologies president Peter Linke said.
"It's particularly good for women who often don't like to wear a heart-rate strap."
Fitness fans who aren't ready to wear a headband to the gym, though, could instead opt for a pulse-monitoring wristwatch or clip.
The Withings Smart Tracker weighs just 8g and looks like a USB stick.
Users clip it to a belt or clothing to measure their daily movements and can touch the device to have it record their heart rate.
Alternatively, the MyBasis wristwatch gadget shines an LED light on the wearer's skin to more regularly check their pulse, temperature and perspiration, as well as movement and sleep patterns.
MyBasis spokesman Damon Miller said pre-orders for the unique sporting watch had already sold out.
Established sports technology brand Fitbit also showed off new, wrist-fitting gadgetry at CES, with its first armband movement monitor called Flex.
The armband, due in autumn, is designed to be worn at all times and its sensors measure the user's steps throughout the day, showing a progress bar to indicate whether they will reach their goal.
Fitness achievements can be uploaded to an app and compared with those from friends, making fitness a game.
Some new health gadgets at CES had more serious intentions, however.
The Masimo iSpO2 Pulse Oximeter is the first device of its kind to plug into an Apple iPhone or iPod Touch and, similar to oximeters in hospitals, this accessory clips on to a finger to measure oxygen levels in a user's blood.
Masimo spokesman Mike Drummond said the device was designed for use in fitness but could also be helpful pilots and mountain climbers, to prevent against altitude sickness.
Another, smaller iPhone accessory at CES tackled the cardiorespiratory system.
Zensorium's Tinke gadget is a colourful rectangle on to which users place a thumb to measure their heart rate, blood oxygen, respiratory rate and the rhythm of their heart.
The device can also estimate how stressed the user is, spokeswoman Amber Lim says, and deliver breathing exercises to calm them.
TOP FITNESS GADGETS OF CES 2013
- Basis fitness watch: Measures heart rate, activity, sleep and temperature.
- Zensorium Tinke: The iPhone accessory measures your breathing and pulse.
- Fitbit Flex: The armband notes your steps, has a a vibrating alarm and connects wirelessly to a phone.
- HAPIfork: The "smart" fork measures how fast and how much you eat with it and uploads data to a phone.
- Masimo iSpO2 Pulse Oximeter: Connects to an iPhone to measure oxygen in your blood.
- Withings Smart Activity Tracker: Records activity and a wearer's heart rate.
- BodyMedia Core 2: The small movement-sensing, temperature-gauging device can be housed in bangles for a fashionable look.
- Spree: Worn in a headband, this gadget tracks temperature, movement and heart rate.
- O-Synce ScreenEye Computer: The sun visor has a hidden head-up display beneath that shows statistics from other linked devices.
- Fitbug Orb: This button-shaped step tracker can be worn like a watch.
No comments:
Post a Comment