Cicret Smart Bracelet: your arm as a phone display
Smart devices are popping up everywhere, but this is the
first time we’ve seen when they literally become an extension of yourself: your
very arm is the screen.
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| The Cicret Bracelet will project a tablet interface onto the user's arm |
The company has an ongoing campaign on Indiegogo, where a
pledge of $399 USD will land you your own Cicret Bracelet. Still, once this
stage is over, they expect to sell the bracelets for $600-$700 USD at retail,
so if you’re interested at all, it seems quite a deal. The real question,
though, is how well this works. Are you willing to jump in, or would you rather
wait for the critics to weigh in?
With wearables gaining some traction, smartphones and
tablets are by no means the only mobile devices around nowadays. Now, though,
Cicret is looking to take things a step farther and turn your arm into a
smartphone.
 |
| The Cicret Bracelet will project a tablet interface onto the user's arm |
The Cicret
Bracelet has WiFi, Bluetooth and Micro USB connectivity
The Cicret
Bracelet uses a row of eight proximity sensors to work out where the user's
fin...
The Cicret
Bracelet's proximity sensors work out where the user's finger is and allows
the...
The Cicret
Bracelet is designed to be an independent device
Conceived 12 months ago and designed over the course of 6
months, the Cicret Bracelet is a small wristband that looks similar to the
Jawbone Up.
The Cicret Bracelet's proximity sensors work out where
the user's finger is and allows the...
The Bracelet comprises a pico projector and a row of
eight proximity sensors that point towards the user's forearm. It operates as a
standalone device and, when activated with a twist of the wrist, projects an
Android interface onto the users arm, much like Chris Harrison's Skinput
research. The proximity sensors detect where the user's finger or fingers are
and allow them to interact with the interface as they would any other Android
device.
There are potential advantages to turning ordinary objects
(or, in this case, limbs) into mobile devices, but projected touch screens
typically lack the responsiveness and visual clarity of the glass screens we're
used to. This projected keyboard, for example, delivered a poor typing
experience.
It should be interesting to see if the Cicret Bracelet can
improve on the technology, to make something we'd actually want to use.
The Cicret Bracelet will be available on 10 different colors
Elsewhere, the Cicret Bracelet features an accelerometer and
a vibration module, along with an LED for notifications. Connectivity is
provided by way of WiFi, Bluetooth and a Micro USB port. It is expected to be
made available in 16 GB and 32 GB models.
The device will allow users to send and receive emails,
browse the web and play games. It will also be possible for users to pair it
with an existing smartphone, answer incoming phone calls and activate the
speakerphone functionality on the their smartphone.
Cicret is in the process of raising funds for the further development
and production of the Bracelet, but Pommier says he expects the device to reach
the mass market within a year and a half. The device could cost up to $400, he
says, based on what the company's research suggests people would be willing to
pay
Cicret co-founder Guillaume Pommier tells Gizmag that the
first prototype is due for completion in about three weeks time.
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