wearables News - Page 13 of 25 - CNX Software

March 16, 2018March 16, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Android Wear Becomes “Wear OS by Google”

Android Wear is an operating systems for wearables based on Android, but it may be confusing to (some) consumers, since an Android Wear watch may pair with an iPhone and an Android phone is not requires. Google actually reports one third of Android Wear watch users also own an iPhone, so the company has now decided to rename Android Wear to “Wear OS by Google“. Apart from the name change and new micro website, everything remains the same. Now if they could also change “Android TV” to “TV OS by Google” that would also prevent an other type of confusion among users… Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011. www.cnx-software.com

March 12, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Toshiba Unveils dynaEdge AR Smart Glasses Powered by a Portable Windows Mini PC

Smart glasses have never really gained traction in the consumer space, but they can still be useful in the workplace, especially with augmented reality, where relevant data can be overlaid on top of the user’s view. Toshiba has launched one of those products with dynaEdge AR smart glasses, but instead of having the battery and electronics on the glasses themselves, a portable mini PC running Windows takes care of the heavy lifting and the battery. This should make the glasses lighter – provided proper cable management -, and offer longer battery life. dynaEdge AR100 head mounted display (HMD) specifications: Display – 0.26″ with 640 x 360 resolution (equivalent to 4.1″ display about 35cm away); angle adjustment Audio – Dual microphone with noise cancellation, speaker USB – USB type C port to connect to mini PC Sensors – Ambient light, compass, gyroscope, proximity Location – GPS support Built-in Camera Misc – […]

March 1, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

IMM-NRF52832-NANO is an Ultra Small nRF52832 Module with Bluetooth 5, ANT+, 30 I/Os

If you have a project requiring a programmable Bluetooth 4.x/5 module that’s as small as possible, Canada based I-Syst may have what you need with their IMM-NRF52832-NANO module measuring just 10 x 7 x 1.6 mm. The module is based on Nordic Semi nRF52832 Arm Cortex-M4F SoC with Bluetooth 5 LE (no long range support) and ANT+ connectivity, and exposes up to 30 I/Os for your project. Specifications: SoC – Nordic Semi nRF52832 32 bits Arm Cortex-M4F @ 64MHz with 512KB Flash, 64KB SRAM, 2.4GHz multi-protocol transceiver Connectivity – Bluetooth 5 LE, ANT+, Type 2 NFC -A Tag with wakeup on field Up to 30x I/Os: 3x SPI Master/Slave 2x 2-wire Master (I2C compatible) UART (CTS/RTS) 3x 4 channel PWM 8x configurable 12 bits, 200 ksps ADC Digital microphone interface Quadrature decoder input Sensors – Temperature sensor Security – AES HW encryption Misc – 32MHz & 32.768KHz crystals, low power […]

February 9, 2018February 9, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Ticwatch S / E Android Wear Smartwatches are Powered by Mediatek MT2601 SoC

Android Wear is normally used in products from larger companies such as Huawei, LG, or ASUS. In the past, some smaller companies claimed to have designed their own Android Wear smastrwatch with approval from Google, but eventually their products went nowhere, even though one was listed on some sellers as a pre-order. But last summer, Mobvoi launched a Kickstarter campaign for their Ticwatch S & E smartwatches powered by Android Wear, and they managed to raise over $3 millions dollars from close to 20,000 backers with pledges starting at $99. The watches can now be purchased online for $127.99 and up from sites like Amazon, GeekBuying, GearBest, or directly from Mobvoi store. Ticwatch S (Sport) and E (Express) share many of the same features, but Ticwatch E is a bit lighter and more elegant, while Ticwatch S comes with a breathable band design with an integrated GPS antenna. Specifications: SoC […]

January 9, 2018October 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

SKIIN Smart Underwears Support Energous’ WattUp Near, Mid, and Far-Field Wireless Charging

Near-field wireless charging has been around for several years, but for wireless charging to become really disruptive it needs to work at a distance, and Energous has been working on mid and far-field technology with their WattUp transmissive to charge devices respectively on the desk (mid-field) or in the room (far-field). You need to have compatible devices to work with the technology, and wearables are a prime target, but I was expecting fitness trackers or smartwatches to embed the technology at first, but instead one of the first WattUp compatible wearables are smart underwears from SKIIN. The module found in SKIIN underwears and bras have many of the same features as your typical fitness tracker and some extras: Sensors ECG sensors for Heart Rate Monitoring (HRM) Accelerometer and Gyroscope to measure motion & posture BIA (Bioelectrical impedance analysis) to monitor water intake levels and how your sweat affects your hydration, […]

January 5, 2018January 5, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

OKW Body Case is an IP65/IP67 Enclosure for Wearables & IoT Projects

You may have worked on a battery powered wearable or IoT projects, and the hardware and software are mostly ready, but you’ve yet to find a good way to package it to make it easily wearable, and protect it from the elements. OKW body case could be one way, as it can be used around your arm like a wrist watch, as a key ring attachment, clipped to your trousers or T-shirt, carried around your neck. The case has been moulded in ASA plastic with a high UV protection, includes a TPV sealing ring to ensure IP65/IP67 water & dust proofness, and is assembled with four stainless stell screws using a Torx drive. The company provides two sizes (Large: 55 x 46 x 17 mm, or Medium: 50 x 41 x 16 mm) and claims easy operation with the help of push buttons or touchscreens, although I’d assume water / dust resistance […]

December 28, 2017December 28, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Garmin Launches Vivofit 4 Activity Tracker with One Year Battery Life

I have not spent much time covering wearables like smartwatches and fitness trackers this year, mostly because I find they have too many flaws at this stage. Back in 2016, I found many had a short life time, they would just stop working after a few weeks or months, even the fairly popular Xiaomi Mi Band 2 only lasted 2 months after an ill-fated firmware upgrade. In my case, I also found activity / fitness trackers did not have the motivating factor I thought they’d have, so I don’t think I exercise more or less with one. Finally, another annoyance is that most need to be charged every couple of days or weeks, and I’m frequently leaving the one I’m still using (SH09) run out of battery, losing recent data. The best solution to address the latter issue would be some type of energy harvesting, so that we would never […]

December 19, 2017December 19, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

TDK CeraCharge Solid State Battery-in-a-Chip is Designed for IoT & Wearables

We’ve recently seen solid state batteries are prone to dislodge current Lithium Ion battery technology as they are safer, support higher energy density, and faster charging. Such batteries are expected to be seen in car in the first part of the next decade, in smartphones starting possibly in 2019, but TDK has just announced their own CeraCharge rechargeable solid state SMD battery with mass production scheduled to start in April 2018. TDK CeraCharge battery-in-a-chip will come in compact EIA 1812 package (4.5 x 3.2 x 1.1 mm), offer a capacity of 100 µAh at a rated voltage of 1.4 V, and can be recharged up to 1000 times. Potential applications include IoT devices, real-time clocks, Bluetooth beacons, and systems for energy harvesting. The battery – which will look very similar to an SMD capacitor – does not include liquid electrolyte, and instead uses a solid ceramic element as electrolyte which rules out any risk of fire, explosion, […]