C8 Monday, May 26, 2014
HEALTH
EVERY MOVE
YOU MAKE
Sensoria Fitness Socks.
Connected medical devices are a growth industry worldwide. Jeanette Wang looks at the latest gadgets keeping track of you
I
magine a toothbrush that informs your dentist about your brushing habits, a jumpsuit that alerts you if your baby in the other room rolls over, or socks that coach you to a faster 5km run. You needn’t imagine, really. All these products are already, or will soon be, available for purchase. They are part of a rapidly growing market of connected medical and health devices that was estimated to be worth US$5.3 billion worldwide last year, according to a report by MarketsandMarkets. Connected devices contribute about 80 per cent of the total revenue of the mHealth (mobile health) market; the rest is made up of health care applications. Connected devices include cardiac monitoring, blood-sugar monitors for diabetics, multiparameter trackers, and others such as sleep apnea devices, and respiratory monitors. With increasing awareness of the need for a healthy lifestyle, cardiac monitoring and fitness tracking are the main uses of mobile-enabled connected devices, according to the report. The market for diabetes management devices is on the rise, too, as the chronic disease
becomes more prevalent globally. “People want to know how to live better, how to do things better, so we’ll be seeing more of these connected devices,” says Jorgen Nordin, head of channel and partner development at Jawbone, makers of the popular UP activity tracking wristband. While North America contributes the most revenue to the devices and applications market, the report predicts that the increasing number of chronic diseases, faster adoption of smartphones, and related advances in connectivity will drive the Asian and African mHealth markets at a brisk rate. Here’s a look at some interesting mobile-enabled connected devices coming soon to a store near you. Oral-B Smart Series electric toothbrush Unveiled at the Mobile World Congress in February in Barcelona and set to roll out internationally next month, the toothbrush links wirelessly with iOS and Android devices via Bluetooth 4.0 and records brushing habits. A free app receives the data and offers oral health care tips in return, such as how long to
spend in each corner of the mouth, alongside news headlines. The app can also be used as a remote control to customise your brush to your needs, including setting your target session length and selecting your preferred modes. Using the data, your dentist may programme brushing routines into the app to help you focus on problem zones in the mouth. The makers call it the world’s first available interactive electric toothbrush. It’s expected to sell for about US$220 in the US. connectedtoothbrush.com Mimo smart baby monitor It’s hard for mothers, especially new ones, to tear themselves away from their bubs. But this baby activity tracker from Boston-based company Rest Devices can help give parents peace of mind. Launched in January, the organic cotton jumpsuit monitors an infant’s breathing, skin temperature, body position and activity level, and captures and streams live audio. The data is sent in real-time to an iOS or Android phone app, so parents can receive notifications each time the baby rolls over, for example. The app compiles trend and analytics data, so the
child’s sleep and development can also be tracked. The machine-washable jumpsuit works via two green vinyl stripes that run down the front of the outfit and act as respiratory sensors. There’s also a detachable turtle clip, about 4cm in diameter so it’s not a choking hazard, with a low-energy Bluetooth sensor that relays the data over Wi-fi to a lily pad bay station. The data is sent to Mimo’s servers and also stored on the user’s smartphone almost instantaneously. A Mimo starter kit costs US$200 includes three jumpsuit, a lily pad, a turtle, and all the necessary wiring to connect your device. The onesies come in sizes suitable for infants up to 12 months old. mimobaby.com
Sensoria Fitness Socks Are you off balance while you run? Are you a heel striker or forefoot striker? Are you taking the optimal number of strides per minute? You could get a sports biomechanist to analyse the way you run, or you could just slip on these socks. Made of a special proprietary fabric embedded with sensors, the sock detects pressure and force as your foot lands on the ground, and syncs wirelessly via Bluetooth Smart to your smartphone or computer. Listen to your favourite music as you receive real-time audio coaching via the phone app. Through an accelerometer that snaps
People want to know how to live better, and how to do things better JORGEN NORDIN, JAWBONE
around the ankle, the device also tracks activity, helping you to track the effectiveness of your workout, keep you motivated, and achieve your running goals. The socks cost US$200 per pair and will begin shipping this summer. Its makers Heapsylon, based in Washington state in the US, also offers smart T-shirts and sport bras. sensoriafitness.com BluFit smart water bottle It’s said that we don’t feel thirsty until we are 1 per cent or 2 per cent dehydrated, by which time it has started to affect how our mind and body perform. Here’s the solution – a smart water bottle that determines how much water you need, how much you’ve drunk and when it’s time to hydrate. The phone app determines how much water you need based on various factors such as weight, age, temperature and humidity. The cap of the 950ml water bottle then does the work of tracking your drinking habits through a built-in water sensor and Bluetooth chip.
Clockwise from left: Mimo smart baby monitor; Oral B Smart Series electric toothbrush; BluFit smart water bottle.
The cap also has a USB port for recharging the battery, which lasts from seven to 10 days. The data is set to your phone and then to cloud servers. The app shows your current hydration level, your goals, and graphs of your historical data so you can ensure your body is consistently operating at peak efficiency. If you haven’t drunk enough, the bottle will alert you through sound and light, along with a phone notification. Bottoms up! Check the product website for updates on the availability of the bottle. blufitbottle.com Lumo lift posture improver Like the many fitness trackers available on the market, this device measures how many steps you take each day and how many calories you burn. But what sets it apart is it is able to tell how efficiently you’re moving; specifically, how long you spend in a strong, confident posture. It focuses on improving how you hold your chest, shoulders and upper back. And unlike most fitness trackers, it’s not worn on the wrist but on the chest. The tiny device, which is just about 2.5cm wide, 4.5cm long and 0.5cm thick, is held in place on your collar or bra strap by a strong magnet. Customisable magnetic clasps can even turn it into a stylish accessory. The device pairs with an iOS app to allow you to view your progress and gain valuable insights about your behaviour (the Android version will come later). You can also customise it to send you gentle vibrations when you slouch to remind you to sit tall and stand strong. Lumo BodyTech, the Palo Alto, California-based startup behind the gadget, has made limited quantities of the Lift available for pre-order at US$99. It will ship in summer. lumobodytech.com jeanette.wang@scmp.com
Jawbone takes bold steps forward ................................................ Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com Mainland people don’t walk enough – an average of 6,699 steps, or about 5km, a day – and sleep less than they should, at about six hours and 40 minutes a night. That’s according to data from a survey of Jawbone’s seven leading global markets for its UP wristband, which tracks activity and sleep. Compared with the US, Britain, Germany, France, Japan and Australia, UP wearers in China walk the least. Only users in Japan slept less at five hours and 47 minutes. The survey data was mined from “hundreds of thousands of UP users” in total, says Jawbone’s head of channel and partner development, Jorgen Nordin. He declined to provide an exact figure. Overall, no country hit the widely preached recommendations by health and medical experts of 10,000 steps daily and seven to eight hours of sleep for good health. Users in Britain topped the table for walking (8,261 steps) and sleeping (seven hours and five minutes – edging out Australia and France by a minute).
In a rapidly expanding market of activity trackers, Jawbone hopes to set itself apart by turning data into personalised insights that “nudge” users towards smarter and sustained lifestyle changes. “Our competitive advantage is making sense of data and allowing the end-user to use the data to act differently,” says Nordin. He offers other nuggets gathered from UP users: those who use a phone in bed within an hour of going to sleep get 13 minutes less “sound sleep”, while laptop users lose 37 minutes. Those who sleep with a partner get 15 minutes more deep sleep on average. With the latest incarnation of its activity tracker – the UP24 – launched about two months ago, Jawbone hopes to direct users towards healthier behaviour through real-time coaching. The main difference between the UP24 and the UP – which was introduced in 2012 – is the addition of Bluetooth 4.0 for wireless syncing. Users no longer need to remove the band and plug it into the earphone jack to transfer data to an iOS or Android device.
It also means that users can now get notifications throughout the day. When you wake up, for example, you’ll get a push notification saying “good morning” and a summary of last night’s sleep. Have a 10,000step-a-day walking goal? You’ll be notified in real-time on how you’re progressing towards it – and when you’ve reached it. “With the original UP, you wouldn’t know until you’ve synced your band with the device,” says Nordin. With this wireless capability comes a sacrifice in battery life: now seven days with a single charge, down from 10. Apart from that, the UP24 has only a minor cosmetic difference: the criss-cross pattern on the rubber wristband is now swirled. It still has a tiny end cap covering the jack and a small proprietary USB charging cable – both of which are easily lost. And it still has no display and isn’t waterproof, unlike many other activity trackers on the market. Nordin says sticking to this design was a “conscious choice” since research shows we look
Jawbone UP24 wristbands (above); screengrab from the Up mobile app (left).
at our mobile phone screens about 130 times a day. So is it worth forking out HK$1,348 for the UP24, HK$250 more than the original UP (which is still being sold)? And what about other bands on the market such as the Fitbit, Nike Fuelband or Samsung Gear Fit? After testing the UP24 for about six weeks – and having used the UP for about six months last year – I wouldn’t pay the extra for added Bluetooth. I don’t want to be pushed notifications; I want to look away from a screen as much as possible. So, throughout the test, I’ve actually just used the UP24 exactly as I did the UP – syncing it with my iPhone once or twice a day, when I wanted to. In reviews online, the general consensus seems to be the UP bands still have the edge over their competitors because of its app. The latest version of the app allows users to create “Today I Will” challenges – popup messages which set users an optional goal, such as walking more steps, sleeping by a certain time, or drinking more water. Users can choose to accept or dismiss the challenge. “We’re very happy to report that these challenges are actually working,” says Nordin. According to Jawbone research, those who were sent and opted into a “Today I Will” sleep challenge logged 23 more minutes of sleep than average and were 72 per cent more likely to go to bed early enough to hit their sleep goal. The study took data from more than 1,600 UP users and 5,000 nights of sleep in three separate surveys.