Living Digital 009: Wearables

Image Courtesy of Reuters

This episode of Living Digital takes a look at the wearables industry.

Welcome to Wearables

Behold the various forms of wearable technology.

Mota Smart Ring

Interact with your notifications without constantly being on your phone.

Image Courtesy of Mota

Ringly

Similar in functionality to the Mota Smart Ring but for the chunky jewelry enthusiasts.

Image Courtesy of Ringly

Ralph Lauren Polo Tech Shirt

Tracks and streams biometric data to your phone in realtime.

Image Courtesy of Ralph Lauren

Moto 360

Features include fitness tracking, voice control, and notification capabilities.

Image Courtesy of Motorola

Mimo Baby Monitor

Provides realtime insights about your baby's activity (including body position, temperature and breathing pattern).

Image Courtesy of Dulcie Madden

Google Glass

Bringing technology more seamlessly into everyday life by providing a second screen for your mobile device.

Image Courtesy of Google 

Sensoria Fitness Bra

This sports bra is equipped with a heart rate monitor. (Compatible with various fitness apps).

Image Courtesy of Sensoria

Apple Watch

Last but not least, this customizable watch lets you see and respond to messages, track fitness activity, make payments, and more. 

Image Courtesy of Apple

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Transcript

Welcome to the podcast. Darth Vader, Geordi La Forge, Tony Stark have in common? Wearables: the subject of today's podcast. Wearables refer to wearable technology. Like the Smarthome industry, it weaves technology into everyday life to make things easier. The main functionality we see today is related to quantified self. If you aren’t familiar with the quantified-self movement, it is a way for us to incorporate technology into the collection of data. Like physical activity, sleep patterns, heart rate, etc. They come in various forms. watches, wristbands, and of course Google glass.
The most popular wearable being talked about these days is the Apple Watch. Features mentioned in the Apple Keynote include messaging and calling, communication with Siri , fitness tracking, and Apple Pay. Which I am excited about. Other popular wearable brands include the Nike Fuel Band, Jawbone Up, Fitbit Flex, and Google glass.
ABI research predicts that 90 million wearable devices will be sold in 2014. Big brands are definitely on this bandwagon and so are startups.
When it comes to perception, I’m sure there are many people who think wearables aren’t overwhelmingly beneficial, but I think they are useful in the same way that smartphones are. Just in a different form. I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss them because the way some of us always have our phones, it might as well be an additional limb. The beginning of this industry may seem clunky at times but these things will most likely be one of the keys to help us live longer.
There are so many directions they can go. Can you imagine, I don’t know, a toe ring that…automatically dispense insulin to the when the body has an allergic reaction…or earrings that give you your daily dose of vitamin C. You know? Marrying science and technology just expedites this self care marathon that we call life. I’m looking forward to seeing the world post Apple Watch.