Wearable Gadgets - May 2006
Technology you can wear aims to put the "personal" into personal computing.
Always losing your cell phone, iPod or Palm Pilot? New clothing currently available and in development can help you keep track of your electronic equipment -- or even replace it. Commuter ties, jeans with iPod pockets, and computers in a handbag may become a part of your wardrobe in the near future.
What Are Wearable Gadgets?
Wearable gadgets can be either clothing made to accomodate PDAs, cell phones, and other gadgets, or clothing that integrates electronic features -- a shirt that monitors your heart rate, a jacket with a built-in cell phone, etc.
Some clothing simply holds various electronic devices, such as the Scott EVEST. Some EVESTS have room for 42 items, such as portable keyboards, digital cameras, GPS devices and small laptops. In Fall 2006, Levi Strauss will start selling RedWire DLX jeans, with a built-in iPod docking cradle pocket and a retractable headphone. Thomas Pink is selling a Commuter Tie, which has a pocket on the back to hold an iPod and a loop to contain the headphone wires. Another piece of clothing incorporating the iPod is Koyono's BlackCoat. This revolutionary product has 5 button controls to use your iPod without taking off your coat, using smart fabric by Eleksen. Another iPod-enabled coat is produced by Kenpo, which has iPod controls on the sleeves. A GPS system, along with an MP3 player and a built-in cell phone in a experimental jacket was shown at the CeBIT show.
Ultimately, the idea behind wearable computing is to emphazise the "personal" in personal computing. Most personal computers, according to the Wearable Computing project at MIT, sit on a desk waiting for someone to interact with them. Wearable computing would take the functions of a personal computer and make them truly mobile. So in the future, you may be wearing your computer instead of sitting in front of it. It may sound like something out of Star Trek, but the Wearable Computing Lab in Zurich says, "The 'wearable revolution' could well influence on our lives as profoundly as the emergence of the PC and the Internet."
A few examples: Gauri Nanda, a researcher at MIT, built a computer/handbag of the future. This combo is constructed of fabric with embedded computer chips that will notify you if your wallet is not in your purse. Currently available is a shirt with sensors that collect information about the wearer's heart rate, respiration and other medical measurements. Firefighters will be able to wear a shirt that senses changes in core temperature or stress levels and will wirelessly alert their superiors to the problem.
Potential Uses & Impacts on the Real Estate Industry
If you can't keep track of your cell phone, iPod, PDA and other electronic devices, products like the EVEST could be a great help in organizing and containing your equipment. Other clothing with iPod-enabled pockets provide a handy way to secure your iPod as you make your way through your day. You wouldn't want to wear the BlackCoat to listen to your iPod at the office, but it would be useful for non-work activities.
As a REALTOR® always on the move from the car to the office to listings and showings, clothing equipped with numerous pockets and rechargers would be useful for gathering and organizing all of the electronic gear carried around each day. Clothing with pockets for an MP3 player can enable you to listen to real estate podcasts or e-books from Information Central's Library easily and conveniently. A jacket with a built-in cell phone and GPS system would allow you to carry around less equipment and make you sure are always in the right location for showings and other appointments.
Drawbacks
First of all, you must remember to remove your gadgets from the special clothing before you throw it in the wash. The Scott EVEST has a weight management system, but it may become too heavy if it is loaded down with excessive equipment. Most of the clothing mentioned in this report can be found only online, not in stores, which is a drawback if you prefer to try something on before spending money on it.
Costs
Among currently available products, costs range from approximately $95 for the Commuter Tie, $200 for the RedWire Levis, $139 for the Kenpo Jacket and $1000 for the Koyono BlackCoat.
- Anne-Marie Siudzinski
NAR's Web Wizard Report - No. 80 (May 2006)
A Sampling of Wearable Gadgets
Andy's Wearable Computing Resource
For Further Reading
Wearable Computing at the MIT Media Lab
Wearable Computers You Can Slip Into: The latest generation of these ever-smarter garments look like ordinary clothes, not something only a cyborg would don, (Business Week Online, Mar. 8, 2005)
Fashion industry covets "iPod factor", (The New Scientist, June 4, 2005)
The vision and reality of wearable computing, (Wearable Computing Lab, ETH Zurich)
Questions or Comments?
Send an e-mail to NAR's Web Wizards.
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