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The New Body Art - Wearable Wireless Devices

Posted by Hemos on from the better-then-henna dept.

Freddie writes: "This article discusses the status of wearable computers; the challenges faced by software and hardware manufacturers in developing effective and widely accepted wearable devices; and the commencement of a new paradigm for how wearable technology can create value for consumers and enterprises."

4 of 127 comments (clear)

  1. Wearables need to be washable as well by quistas · · Score: 4, Interesting
    One of the barriers we're going to see to using truly wearable computers is that you accumulate a huge amount of grime. Now, it's no big deal for us, because we shower/toss clothes in the laundry, but for electronic devices of any sort, that kind of constant close exposure to lint, skin flakes, dirt, and grime has the potential to seriously degrade fragile devices. It's one thing to have these things work when you tie one on in your lab, and an another thing entirely to have a real device survive the day-to-day buildup of abuse and layers of crap that'll accumulate on it.


    I think when you can toss your wearable into the laundry along with your collection of failed dot.com T-shirts is when these things will really be ready for long-term use.

    -- q

  2. More Crap to Buy?!?!? by toupsie · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Just what I need! Technology integrated into my clothing so some 5th Avenue Marketing Bastard can target me for more ads "tailored to my lifestyle". Because we all know that consumers really want more advertising targeted to just them. At least that is what those e-mail marketing SPAMs I get tell me.

    What we are talking about is the ability for an advertiser to monitor every waking moment of your life. Big Brother is not Uncle Sam but Big Business. I can just imagine "smart clothing" being like browser cookies. Sure in the beginning it wasn't supposed to be used to track your surfing habits -- its for the user's benefit! But, gee, it works so well, why not use it for tracking consumers? I can just see the day when I walk by Starbucks and my pants will analyse the last time I urinated and determines what size of latte would be perfect for me.

    With a future like this, I think I might hit the gym and go nude the rest of my life...

    --
    Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.
  3. Laundering gadgets is not good for them. by brassman · · Score: 3, Interesting
    I don't want my Palm(tm) build into my clothes; I change my clothes MUCH more often than I change my hardware.

    But it would be nice to get something roughly Palm sized (and clip-on, not inserted, thankyoujustthesame) that would do what my current Palm and cell phone do. Wouldn't mind having it connect to a Jabra style earbud and maybe, just maybe, some sort of headsup display.

    FWIW, Hello Direct, the overpriced headset people, are now selling Bluetooth printer cards and Bluetooth headsets. Same price as 802.b hardware, apparently.

    --
    "Ain't no right way to do a wrong thing."
  4. I don't always want this. by Restil · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I don't always WANT to be reached 24/7. I don't always want to have access to the world all the time. But here is the important thing. When I DO want it, I need the capability.

    I can safely say I have no use for a cell phone. I used to have one. For years I carried the thing around with me everywhere I went. It seemed to be impossible to live without it. Then I did an assessment.

    Turned out, the people most likely to call me on my phone, I never wanted to talk to. And the people I was calling from my cell phone, I could have just as easily called from a voice line. Call because I'm on my way and need directions? What is so difficult about getting proper directions before I left? Better doing that and having a vision in my mind exactly where I need to be going BEFORE I get in the car, rather than reacting last minute looking for streets in a residential area where I'm likely to hit someone due to lack of attention.

    It would be useful, but I'm not going to be doing any websurfing while I'm driving, and I damn well hope nobody else is either. Certainly would be nice to listen to some mp3's, but I don't need internet access for that. Would be nice to have a live webcam in my car. However, the world can live without THAT feature to my website until I'm able to afford it.

    Fact of the matter is, the world ISN'T connected all the time. The internet, for better or worse, is still a novelty for many people. Its making headway, but it still hasn't moved past the point where I need to be plugged in 24/7 or my life will suffer as a result.

    -Restil

    --
    Play with my webcams and lights here