Wearable Tech: Going Too Far?

What is Wearable Tech?

Analysts at Credit Suisse say the wearable tech market is poised to explode from $3-5 billion today to as much as $50 billion in the next five years. Robert Scoble, a tech evangelist with Rackspace Hosting, predicts that in five years you’ll be wearing 100 “sensors” connected to the Internet cloud. Venture capital guru Mary Meeker says wearable tech is a major technology shift akin to desktop PCs and mobile computers, one that is developing even faster than those revolutionary innovations did.

Wearable tech has been around for a very long time, of course. Shoes are wearable tech; so are mechanical wristwatches. The calculator watches of the 1970s better fit the popular conception of “technology” because they involve electronics and computing. Today, miniaturization and wireless communication are enabling next-generation wearable tech. It’s now possible to pack serious computational power into a conveniently wearable package. Wearables gain even more power by connecting them to the Internet with wifi, or via the smartphone or tablet that you carry.

Convenience is one of the selling points of wearable tech. Instead of fumbling in a pocket for a smartphone, Google Glass can be used instantly with a spoken command or head gesture. You can check your inbox for messages with a glance at a smart wristwatch. By golly, you can even read the time in less than 5 seconds!

Rumors abound about smartwatches. Some existing and upcoming devices will power instant messaging, phone calls, email, Facebook and Twitter interaction, and maybe even double as e-book readers. Typically these gadgets interface with your smartphone via a bluetooth connection.

“Augmented reality” is a big part of wearable tech. Google Glass, a smartwatch, or just about any souped-up, hooked-up wearable item can give you more information about what you’re experiencing than your five senses alone can. For example, while looking at a landmark, a painting, or a person's face, you could identify it with a Web search, or view its Wikipedia entry.

Interactivity with the user is a distinctive capability of wearable tech. The MindWave Mobile is an existing device that can read and display your brainwaves. There's even a MindPlay interface which allows users to control computers and smartphones. Other wearables have sensors that can monitor your vital signs, capturing data about your stress levels, activity rate, sleep habits, and other health indicators. Your golf swing, running style, and other athletic actions can be monitored and devices can issue corrective alerts in real time. All of this data can be uploaded to other devices for obsessive-compulsive analysis later.

A myriad of products that monitor one’s bodily functions and performance are available, and significant numbers of health-conscious people buy them. Some are rather awkward, like the Armour 39 Fitness Belt; it wraps around your chest, monitoring heart rate and other vital signs, using a smartphone or smartwatch to display its readings. The Nike FuelBand is a simple wristband with a digital display that uses an accelerometer to measure physical exercise activity in “Nike Fuel” units. There’s even a wearable exercise monitor for pets called Fitbark.

Wearable health and fitness monitors can also upload their data to the cloud, which poses some interesting potential consequences. Your health insurance premiums may be reduced if you can prove, with data from wearable tech, that you are taking steps to stay fit. But there are obvious privacy concerns, and the potential for coercive insurance pricing based on whether one is “willing” to share such data. And what if your wearable tech device gets hacked, or tapped? Yikes.

And then there are the silly, the bizarre, and the questionably useful wearables. Maybe you've already seen t-shirts and hats that act as wifi detectors. The Hug Shirt has sensors that detect and remotely recreate the sensation of touch, warmth and emotion. In the May 15 Geekly Update I mentioned diapers that can communicate via Twitter. And for extra credit, you can search on your own for "haptic underwear."

Wearable tech is the new frontier for product designers and marketers. The virtually infinite applications of wearable tech make it inevitable that we will see a flood of good, bad, and downright silly products. It’s going to be a long decade for consumers weary of aimless “innovation.”

Tell me about your favorite examples of wearable tech, and what you think of the idea. Post your comment or question below...