Although activity trackers can provide us with a whole range of information which otherwise goes unnoticed, the problem soon arises when it comes to getting people to wear them and keep them on too – but I’m sure this wouldn’t be so hard if they controlled our surroundings too!

Consumers are always going to be fussy, wanting smaller gadgets in a range of styles, sizes and colours with more functions and a longer battery life – it’s unsurprising that companies find it hard to please everyone.

Whilst the idea behind these trackers is to track activity levels along with sleep, most trackers on the market have additional functions such as ‘nudging’ the user after periods of inactivity, or getting users to commit to goals which they are reminded of daily. As expected, these functions have helped users to improve activity levels, and now many trackers are able to interact with other apps and products too. For example FitBit have produced scales to measure weight, BMI and body fat which is automatically synced to the user’s app and the Jawbone Up integrates with other health and fitness apps such as myfitnesspal and runkeeper to give users a more complete overview of their day. However it seems that this interactivity could be about to take a step even further, with activity trackers interacting with our surroundings too.

Wearable tech could eventually act as a form of remote control for our inter-connected lives, especially with such advances in technology. The JawboneUp24 already shows signs of this, with its IFTT (“If This Then That”) function, where users can activate a range of services. From integrating their heating or lighting to turn on when their band detects that they have woken up, to sending a reminder to the users phone to do press ups if they haven’t been to the gym in a few days. It’s evident that wearable tech is rapidly becoming ‘smarter’.

When it comes to the near future it seems certain that wearable tech will eventually respond to our every needs, all through the data it collects – Chris Dancy has already turned this into reality! It’s crazy but awesome to think that poor sleep quality tracked through a wristband could soon regulate the room temperature and light that we find ourselves waking up to, and this is just one of many functions activity trackers may have. Whilst we can already track many aspects of our lives from the technology situated inside a wristband, soon it could be the control of many devices too.

Adie Blanchard – Researcher

Source

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/526341/jawbones-vision-activity-tracking-now-remote-control-tomorrow/