Ear-O-Smart already has been our star product last month when it was featured as gadget of the month March. The product by the Canadian company BioSensive Technologies will be paying us a visit at our WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in Milan end of this month and speaker Ashlyn Bird already took the time to answer some questions for us prior to the event:
1. What is the most important thing you learned while being involved in the topic of wearable technologies?
In talking with numerous wearable technology users, the biggest thing I have learned is that there is a strong demand for wearables designed specifically for women. Women account for nearly half (48%) of the wearables market yet most wearable tech is designed with the male in mind. Current wrist-based monitors are typically masculine – designed to be unisex at best – then made available in a few ultra-feminine colours which significantly restricts how we (women) can wear them. When women wear accessories – wearable technology devices included – we want our accessories to enhance our look and add to our style. The result with the current wrist-based wearable devices is that a lot of the time, women are only wearing them to monitor their workouts, then we stash them in our purse the rest of the time. In reality, we only burn about 10% of our calories in a day during a workout. This means a lot of women aren’t capturing about 90% of their daily activity which is extremely important to optimizing your workouts! Aside from just optimizing workouts, every women has her own individual goals – some want to lose weight, some want to gain weight, some just want to feel healthier or be more self-aware. I have learned that wearable technology ventures further than just fitness or workout gear, and even further than connectivity (social); it is truly starting to be about self-awareness and making it easier for you to be yourself – making it easier for you to be your better self – however you define that.
2. How can your company help bringing the world of fashion and the world of technology closer together?
At Biosensive Technologies Inc., we have already recognized this shift from wearable *technology* to *wearable* technology where the focus is shifting from the technology to the wearability of the product and the fashion statement it makes. With this in mind, the future of wearables is simple – more stylish, more inconspicuous, more accurate, more convenient, more accessible… Technology will no longer be an add-on to our everyday lives, but become a seamless, integrated part of our lives that help us stay connected, be more effective, more efficient and more aware of ourselves.
At Biosensive, we have found that developing the “technology” behind our wearables is the simplest part. The greater challenge is actually giving equal focus to the “wearable” aspect of the wearables technologies we develop. As a result, Biosensive strives to develop the world’s smallest wearable technology hardware that can be easily embedded into the things we wear every day – a great example of this is our first consumer wearable, Ear-O-Smart, the world’s first smart earring designed for women. Of course, besides functionality, accuracy and being small enough to wear comfortably and discretely; we recognize the importance of fashion, design and style if we want women to be able to wear Ear-O-Smart from morning to night. As a fashion- and style-conscious women myself, when working on Ear-O-Smart designs, I always ask myself, “Do I love these earrings? How would I feel wearing these earrings? What would I wear these earrings with and where would I wear them?” At the end of the day though, no matter how much thought and consideration our team (myself included) contributes to our designs, we recognize the importance of customer feedback and the value derived from collaborating with experts in the world of fashion. At Biosensive Technologies, we welcome (and rely) on collaboration and partnerships with jewelry designers and other fashion experts to really help us bridge the gap between fashion and technology.
3. What is your favorite wearable product/device (besides your own) of 2015?
This is a tough question because there are so many amazing wearables being developed right now. If I have to narrow it down to just one wearable technology, I would have to say that Quell takes my #1 spot. Quell is a 100% drug-free wearable technology solution for alleviating chronic pain, including conditions such as painful diabetic neuropathy, fibromyalgia, sciatica, and osteoarthritis among others. To me, I think Quell really demonstrates the power of technology and just how much wearables have the potential to add value to people’s lives far beyond working out and staying connected. The impact that a drug-free solution for chronic pain management can provide is astronomical, both from an individual and economic standpoint. Quell really is a game changer in the wearable space.
Meet Ashlyn at our conference in Italy on April 29!
