3rings smart plug fundraising on Kickstarter

June 19, 2015 | by
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/3rings.gif” thumb_width=”150″ /]A note from founder and chairman Steve Purdham brings the news that the 3rings smart plug [TTA 11 Mar], which tracks an older one’s activity through everyday actions such as turning on an electric tea kettle or TV and radio on, is raising funds on Kickstarter through 13 July. Their goal is $30,709 (£20,000) of which $10,306 (£6,712) has been raised with 24 days to go. With product design and testing complete, the funds will go towards facilitating production. Pledges start at £2 and go up to £5,000 for practically everything listed in the lower donation levels, a special evening in Oxford for two and an autographed, personalized picture and autobiography of Manchester United and Scotland legend Willie Morgan. Note: the 3rings plug and service is only available in the UK, but if the service is available later in your country, any subscription pledges will be honored. Best of luck to Steve and the 3rings team! Release.

Healbe GoBe sees daylight–but still can’t count calories

February 24, 2015 | by

[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/healbe-gobe-top-4-970×0.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]At CEWeek NYC last June, this Editor spent some time with Healbe’s co-founder, who demonstrated to me a prototype of the Healbe GoBe 100% Automatic Body Manager fitness tracker. I walked away underwhelmed at its performance and skeptical of its main claim to fame–automatic measurement of caloric intake via measuring blood glucose conversion to fluid in cells. This was reinforced by a trail of tech product reviewers digging into its development, the controversial science behind it and a growing rebellion on Indiegogo, where contributions exceeded $1 million. Then it took delays–first September, then November. Few in the industry believed it would ever ship.

However, it has, and at least one intensive review after a month of wear is in from Engadget. Topline: it’s not a scam (which will disappoint some)  (more…)

2013 fitness tracker sales…and a personal experience

January 16, 2014 | by

As someone who has been wearing a Jawbone UP for some five months, I was interested to read that Mobihealthnews reports on a (pay-walled) survey that shows Fitbit, Jawbone and Nike as sharing 97% of the activity tracker market in 2013 present, the split being 68%, 19% & 10%, respectively (the rest 3%).

At the same time that news agency, along with others, reports on the rash apparently created by the recently-introduced Fitbit Force on some people. Closer to home, I have had cause to scrutinise (more…)