Based on the displays at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the wearables trend is set to explode in 2014 with practically everyone offering their take on a device that can track your fitness activity. However, other health monitors are emerging that focus on areas beyond fitness. This includes everything from a toothbrush that lets you know if your teeth are clean enough to a bracelet that tells you if you are soaking up too much sun.
Skin Health: Stylish Sun Prevention
JUNE by Netatmo (approx. $99 in Q2 2014) is a bracelet (or a brooch) that can measure exposure to the sun. The device syncs with an iPhone app to advise women on the best way to protect their skin, according to their skin type and UV exposure. The app can calculate a suggested maximum exposure and provide updates throughout the day as well as suggest SPF protection and when it is a good idea to wear a hat, sunglasses or seek out shade. The bracelet’s jewel is available in three colors: Platinum, gold or gunmetal.
Baby’s Health: Secure Night’s Sleep
The Mimo Baby Monitor ($200) from Rest Devices lets you monitor your baby when he or she is asleep so that you can sleep soundly knowing your baby is okay. The 100% organic cotton kimono has non-contact sensors that measure a baby’s breathing, temperature and movement and sends this data right to your smartphone in real time. Not only can you listen in on your baby, you can also set your smartphone to alert you when something changes, including when he or she wakes up, rolls over or gets chilly.
Cardio Health: At the Heart of the Matter
Qardio is a new technology company focused on developing smart sensors for the heart, including QardioCore (pictured), a wearable heart monitor, and QardioArm, a blood pressure monitoring system. Both devices work with the QardioApp, which transmits data to a secure storage cloud that your healthcare provider can access any time to monitor your heart’s health without frequent in-office visits and tests. QardioCore is designed to be form fitting and discreet as you strap it around your chest to monitor ECG, heart rate, levels of physical activity and more. Both devices are seeking approval from the FDA.
Ear Health: From Smartphone to Otoscope
CellScope is a company working on developing a suite of optical attachments for smartphones that can give parents easy-to-use tools to capture diagnostic-quality data from their home, which they can remotely share with doctors. First up is CellScope’s Oto, a toolkit that transforms an iPhone into a digital otoscope (a medical device used to look into the ears). Currently, the company is testing the device through its Pioneer Physicians pilot program before making it ready for consumers later this year.
Dental Health: Are You a Good Brusher?
What if your toothbrush could tell you what teeth you are neglecting? Or if you brushed long enough? Or how well you are getting to those hard to reach places? Kolibree’s Smart Toothbrush (expected Q3 2014) promises to do all of that and more. The Bluetooth toothbrush syncs with a free mobile app and sends you stats after each brush along with a score so you can monitor your progress. Up to five users can be on the same account, so a parent can monitor their child’s brushing habits and even share the information with their dentist.
