wearable technology

Years from now, will historians pinpoint 2013 as one of those myriad present-at-the-creation moments when a new technology entered the mainstream? When it comes to wearable computing, we're not there yet. But it seems that we're getting close.

Asked last week to assess the state of this nascent market, Apple's Tim Cook described wearable computing as profoundly interesting, which might qualify as understatement of the year.

Perhaps more than any other of its many skunkworks, Google's Project Glass has fired imaginations about the prospects -- as well as the perils -- of wearable computing. Hype aside, … Read more

From Google Glass to the Pebble smartwatch, wearable tech is where it's at. The curved-screen EmoPulse Smile is a smartphone, smartwatch, and digital companion wrapped into one chunky wrist bracelet. It will be interesting to see if it can successfully get off the ground thanks to an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign.

There's no Android versus iOS battle here. The Smile actually runs on Linux. That may put it at a disadvantage as far as app stores go, but it does give EmoPulse leeway to develop a custom system to try to carry out some ambitious features. The company is working on creating a device that learns what movies you like, monitors your sleep, and interacts with you with a personality meant to out-Siri Siri.… Read more

It doesn't look like Apple will be cooking up its own rendition of Google Glass, but some other sort of wearable technology could be brewing.

During an interview at the D11 conference on Tuesday, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that he thinks wearable computing is "profoundly interesting." While he noted that glasses seem to be "risky," the idea of wearing something on the wrist is "natural."

However, he said, "you have to convince people it's so incredible you want to wear it." Cook pointed out that most young people don'… Read more

No doubt, Google executives will spend plenty of time at the annual Google I/O conference that begins Wednesday in San Francisco talking about Google Glass, and all the opportunities for developers to create programs for the geeky eyewear.

But outside the conference hall, a Google partner plans to unveil a pair of sunglasses that comes with its own heads-up display. Even though Google invited the company, Recon Instruments, to demonstrate the glasses at its premier developer event of the year, the specs have nothing to do with Google Glass.

Instead, Recon is launching Jet, heads-up display glasses using its … Read more

A new shirt being touted as "the better button-down" aims to make laundry as we know it a thing of the past. The entrepreneur behind it claims it never wrinkles and can be worn over and over, without being washed.

Marketing grad Mac Bishop, 24, says his shirt not only looks good, but is soft to the touch, resistant to wrinkling, and odor-free. To prove it, he wore one of the shirts for 100 days in a row without washing it.

"I've (run) 4 miles in this shirt, I've biked 5 miles in this shirt, I've thrown it on after a basketball game," Bishop told CBS News. "It airs out. It's the miracle fiber." … Read more

Technology has tiptoed into kids' pajamas with onesies covered in QR codes that link to bedtime stories.

"It's time for bed, Tommy. Brush your teeth, put on your PJs, and let's scan you."

Smart PJs, called the world's "first and only interactive pajamas," require downloading a free app for iOS or Android and scanning one of dozens of codes from the Smart PJs with a smartphone or tablet. The device then reads aloud a story, sings a lullaby, or broadcasts pictures of animals or other bedtime-appropriate cuteness. … Read more

While anyone could dream up a spinning virtual GPS globe constantly updated with a slideshow of global Flickr photos emanating from a hat, competitors in Frog Design's contest for new wearable technology concepts had to keep their designs within the realm of feasibility.

The key requirement that keeps all the designs within reason is that they have to be able to come to market within three years. That doesn't necessarily mean they will come to market, but at least there's a chance.

The global design firm ran its internal competition for new wearable technology concepts last year and just unveiled the results (PDF). They include some fun and fascinating ideas that explore everything from communing with trees through technology to an urban compass that leads you into discovering unexpected parts of a city.… Read more

LAS VEGAS--It seems that many companies want in on the wearable fitness tracker craze, and Withings is no exception. Its new Smart Activity Tracker is a small, light, 8-gram device that records user activity, sleep, and even measures heart rate in real time.

About the size of a USB stick, the Smart Activity Tracker can handle all the typical pedometer duties such as logging the steps you take, stairs climbed, and calories burned. What sets this gadget apart, though, is its heart rate sensor located on back. Just place your finger tip in the right spot and the Tracker will … Read more

Who needs an Xbox when you can just put on a sweatshirt and thrash your arms about? That's the idea behind Woven, a wearable gaming platform by two Dutch designers.

Christiaan Ribbens and Patrick Kersten, recent graduates of the Utrecht School of the Arts, embedded a sweater and pair of jeans with a small Bluetooth module, speakers, motion sensors, shake motors, a three-color LED screen, and other gizmos to create their concept gaming platform. A trio of LilyPad Arduino microcontrollers process the data and operate the LEDs (and are, incidentally, washable). … Read more