Get ready for the third wave of computing where technology moves from nerdy gadgets to being seamlessly integrated into our lives.
t Here are a few of my favorites that give us both form and function.
Navigate GPS jacket
t Stop wandering into oncoming traffic and innocent bystanders. The gorgeous Navigate jacket from Wearable Experiments embeds electronics and a GPS into its fabric to guide you to your destination in style. Put your phone away and enjoy the journey. Navigate gives you a tap on the appropriate shoulder when it’s time to make a turn, and includes a series of LED lights in its sleeves to let you know how close you are to your destination.
No Place Like Home GPS shoes
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t If that’s not fairy tale enough for you — how about these No Place Like Home GPS Shoes created by Dominic Wilcox, which show you where to turn and how much further you have to go by illuminating the lights in its toes. The left shoe shows you which direction to go while the right shoe acts as a progress bar. Inspired by Dorothy tapping her heels together three times to get home, they won’t quite teleport you, but they’ll help you find your way there.
Move: precision in movement
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t Move by Electric Foxy is an athletic top that improves performance and precision in your movements. As you wear it, Move recognizes your body position and muscle movements and gives you real-time feedback to nudge you into the right position as you go about your yoga, pilates, physical therapy… A companion mobile app lets you dig even deeper to track your performance over time, see where you’re improving, and learn what areas still need work.
Midi jacket: create music through movement
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t Machina believes the way we interact with our clothing is changing. Their first item, the Midi Jacket, turns your body into a musical instrument, allowing you to create music through movement. Tap your chest to make sounds. Use your arms to change volume and tempo. Imagine the musician becoming part of the performance, creating music in ways never before imagined. Check out this amazing video to see it in use.
Jon Lou: luxury handbags with power
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t Leave it to MIT engineers who are self-proclaimed techinistas (equal parts technophiles and fashionistas) to design a purse that is as functional as it is beautiful. Jon Lou‘s luxury Italian leather handbags contain enough power to charge your phone for an entire week. And, with all that power, why not help a girl out by lighting up our purse’s insides so we can actually find what we’re looking for instead of doing the awkward dig and seek? Thank you, techinistas, their handbags do that too.
Ezio jewelry: beauty, smarts and functionality
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t It’s okay, you can put your phone away. Really. EZIO‘s Italian designer has created beautiful jewelry and designer smart watches with small gems that light up to let you know when you’ve got incoming calls, messages or important notifications so you don’t have to fear missing out.
Ping social networking hoodie
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tPing is a social networking hoodie for — you guessed it, Facebook — that explores our ability to stay connected online without screens. Use natural movements to send updates and messages to your friends. You define what each gesture means. Lift your hood to post an update, tie a bow to accept a friend request, zip, button, bend and swing to ping your friends automatically. A subtle tap on the shoulder lets you know when your friends respond back.
tNo phone, no laptop… Simply go about your day, look good and stay connected. Here’s to that!
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