Posted By Simon Montford on Dec 23, 2015 A Hungarian startup called Codie, that successfully raised $96,306 back in May 2015 via crowdfunding platform Indiegogo, has started shipping its robotic toy. The device offers a fun way to teach kids how to code. The campaign was so successful that it raised one third of its funding goal in only two days, and ended up exceeding it by 115%.
Posted By Simon Montford on Dec 21, 2015 A UK registered company based in Bristol called OXY Technologies, has launched a campaign on Indiegogo for a smartwatch that will be able to connect with Android, iOS and Windows 10 smartphones. The makers are working with the open source community to accelerate development, and improve the product.
Posted By Simon Montford on Dec 14, 2015 Experts have been talking about the potential of wireless charging for a while now, but so far not a single commercial product capable of wirelessly charging has entered production. I remember watching a TED talk by Eric Giler of MIT, in which he told the audience that within the near future, our wired lives would become untangled. He then went on to demo a prototype wireless charging technology called WiTricity, which back in 2009, when he did the talk, was supposed to be a "near-to-market" invention.
Posted By Simon Montford on Dec 11, 2015 ONAGOfly is a micro-drone with an on-board camera so it can take stills and record video. It can be controlled via a smartphone and comes with infrared obstacle avoidance. Pledges start at $179 for the first 200 units, and $199 thereafter. The company's estimated shipping date is February 2016.
Posted By Simon Montford on Dec 1, 2015 Omate announced today that they will be holding a flash sale of their new 3G enabled smartwatch, the Omate Rise, exclusively on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo. The company will be accepting pre-orders from 3pm GMT / 10am EST on Monday December 7th, for a 48hr period. Backers will be the first in the World to wear the Rise when it becomes available to them in March 2016, instead of June.
Posted By Simon Montford on Nov 20 2015 From hero to zero, the Zano drone failed to take off. Having been one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns of 2014, the team behind the doomed project concede defeat. The company raised over £2m worth of pre-orders from 12,000 supporters, and it now appears that the majority of those that paid £170 to own one will have nothing to show for it.
Posted By Nicola Osborne on Oct 29 2015 18:15 - 18:20 Simon Montford (WEB3//IOT) @simonmontford
The theme tonight is the maker revolution – the opening up of industrial technologies to amateaur makers. Maker Culture contributes 30 billion to the global economy, so this is a big and growing thing, with Internet of Things at the centre (the recorded livestream can be viewed here). Posted By Keesjan Engelen on June 25, 2015 Q1 of 2015 saw a record 128 electronic projects raise at least $100K each on Kickstarter and Indiegogo. Reaching $100K is often considered a successful campaign, and many think that the founders can take this money to a factory and just get the stuff made. The 4 out of 5 hardware campaigns that don’t manage to ship in time show that most teams still underestimate the DFM (Design For Manufacturing) process. A number of factors complicate things:
Posted By Simon Montford on May 20, 2015 An increasing number of people are concerned about the security of their private data. Most of us store our data on servers that are owned and operated by third parties, but is it 100% safe and secure? Last year hackers obtained highly sensitive images via a breach of Apple's cloud services suite iCloud, and posted them on the Internet. As a result "private cloud" hosting has become more popular.
Posted By Simon Montford on May 1, 2015 Pulse Play is a social scorekeeping, and ranking system for racket players. It is aimed at amateurs because they often don't have anyone impartial to keep score, which can result in disagreements, or even arguments during a friendly game of tennis, squash, badminton, or table tennis. If you're a fan of racket sports, then I'm sure you'll be able to relate.
Posted By Simon Montford on April 20, 2015 There are plenty of home automation systems available to purchase these days. In fact consumers are spoilt for choice. Two of the greatest problems, however, faced by most people who are thinking of buying smart home tech is configuration, and compatibility. A Chicago-based startup claims to have solved both problems.
Once the "smart peddle" by Connected Cycle affixes to any bicycle, it can automatically record the location of the bike, track journeys, and act as a theft deterrent. A notification is sent if the bike is moved, or tampered with. A really great feature is that it doesn't need to be charged as it's self-powered. If only someone could invent a phone, or smartwatch that does that!
Posted By Simon Montford on March 16, 2015 The ELF is a nano drone that's being developed by a Chinese company called Elecfreaks. The company's campaign video does a great job of making me really want one, primarily because you can use the ELF to not only take "dronies", but also "remote view" using the accompanying cardboard cutout AV headset, during flight. Although extremely cool, neither feature is however unique.
Posted By Simon Montford on March 12, 2015 Disclaimer: I've known both Hermione and Ben Way, founders of Quiet Night, for many years and so, for the sake of my readers, I will do my very best to be as objective as possible! Quiet Night is the ultimate parent-friendly appcessory that will delight both parents, as well as the youngest member of the family. This is because the device plays soothing tunes that keep babies occupied and happy, leading to a 50% reduction in crying. They say silence is golden, so I believe this product has huge potential.
Posted By Simon Montford on March 3, 2015 Quell is the only drug-free FDA approved, and doctor recommended, device in the States that's clinically proven to relieve chronic pain at the touch of a button. The Boston-based company wants to help millions of people avoid discomfort as well as the health implications, and side-effects of taking pain-relieving medication. NeuroMetrix, Quell's creator, launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo earlier this week that exceeded its funding target a day after launch.
Posted By Simon Montford on Feb 18, 2015 Crowdfunding veterans, Evoz are running another campaign on Indiegogo for their "Evoz Parenting Monitor". Like many other home security devices, the Evoz enables parents to capture video and still images as well as interact remotely via their smartphone and tablet. What's different about this baby monitor, however is that it offers what Evoz calls a "toolbox" for parents that includes advice forums, and in-app expert parenting advice.
Posted By Simon Montford on Feb 17, 2015 Flicks is a Bluetooth-enabled wireless speaker that's not only an audio system but also an HD LED projector that can display images of up to 100 inches (254 cms). Movies and TV shows can be streamed via HDMI media devices such as those produced by Amazon (Fire), Google (Chromecast), and Roku. In addition, music can be streamed from a tablet or smartphone. Depending on which model you buy, battery life ranges from 4-8hrs (movie watching), and 28-56hrs (music streaming).
Posted By Simon Montford on Feb 16, 2015 E-ink provides a really crisp display and uses very little power, making it an ideal technology for small screen connected devices like Displio, as well as smartwatches such as the Geak Watch 2, and wearables such as the Tago arc by Boston's Liberate Technologies Inc. One major drawback of using e-ink instead of LCD or OLED, however, is that it can only display monochrome images.
Posted By Simon Montford on Feb 11, 2015 Nano drones such as the Zano, Anura and Nixie are growing in popularity. Unlike the aforementioned nano drones, this one's pretty basic, but that's reflected in the price. The creators have intentionally kept things simple, and cost-effective as they want their Nano Drone to appeal to first-time users. Not only is it very easy to operate, but the company's patent-pending impact guards have been designed to protect the drone's blades from hitting the ground or getting damaged during wall or ceiling collisions.
Posted By Simon Montford on Feb 10, 2015 Kits aimed at novice hardware enthusiasts are becoming increasingly popular. They aim to make "hardware hacking" really simple and easy, because up until recently experimenting and building connected devices has involved a soldering iron and a lot of technical knowledge. Examples of kits that are available to purchase include SAM, Bitalino, LittleBits, and Wunderbar (for a more extensive list of kits and component suppliers check out our directory). This week another IOT kit, called MESH, has appeared on Indiegogo.
Posted By Simon Montford on Feb 7, 2015 In 2013 Canonical attempted to raise $32 million via crowdfunding to build the Ubuntu Edge. Unfortunately their Indiegogo campaign did not succeed, however the company did manage to attract $12.8 million by the time their campaign ended. The Edge was intended to double as a desktop PC when connected to a monitor, mouse, and keyboard, which would have been pretty cool. Cononical's second attempt, the "Aquaris E4.5 Ubuntu Edition", will not transform into a PC, but retains the Edge's best feature - the OS.
Posted By Simon Montford on Jan 28, 2015 The best way to describe RideOn is Google Glass meets Skully. Developed by winter sports enthusiasts who used to design helmet displays for fighter pilots, RideOn proves that augmented reality isn't just a gimmick, but can be used for a multitude of different (and possibly life-saving) uses. Examples include GPS location (avalanche), navigation (if separated or lost), entertainment such as gaming and video streaming, communication with other RideOne users, and sharing of content to social media.
Posted By Simon Montford on Jan 26, 2015 Canary, the complete home security system, is about to go on sale in the States at a RRP of $250. The Canary received a great deal of attention when the company exceeded its funding goal of $100,000 on Indiegogo, back in July 2013. The Canary attracted an impressive two million dollars' worth of pre-orders, and also closed an additional $10 million round of funding led by Khosla Ventures.
Posted By Simon Montford on Jan 20, 2015 Moodmetric claims to be the smallest wearable technology in the world for measuring emotions. "The Moodmetric ring measures the autonomous nervous system signals that can be used to understand emotional reactions and improve quality of life". We all lead busy lives and often miss the signs of stress which can, if ignored, lead to chronic illness or even premature death. Products such as Moodmetric and Olive could, therefore, potentially have a hugely beneficial impact on society.
Posted By Simon Montford on Jan 10, 2015 As covered in a previous story "Prepare for the second wave of fitness trackers", expect the next generation of health and fitness trackers to be lighter, more versatile and far better at understanding what type of activity is being undertaken. Also expect them to be far more accurate than the previous generation. Products that fall into this category include GymWatch, Basis Peak, Jawbone Up3, Atlas, Moov, Amiigo, Uno, FitBit Surge and now the AmpStrip by FitLinxx.
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