Tag Archives: Bluetooth4.0

Fitbit updates Android app with wireless syncing over Bluetooth 4.0

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Fitbit updates Android app with wireless syncing over Bluetooth 40

Fitbit promised wireless syncing and, as of today, it's finally delivered. An Android-only app update, currently live in Google Play, will now allow Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II users to transfer data wirelessly from their Zip or One Activity Trackers to the Fitbit application. The new feature, which works over Bluetooth 4.0, was previously announced at this past CES alongside news of the Flex band, and initially targeted for an end-of-January release. But that's not all this update heralds -- it also packs the ability to manage silent alarms, adds push notifications, a distance tile and additional tap-to-pair NFC functionality for use with the Flex. Unfortunately, you'll still have to wait a bit for that lifestyle band to launch, as Fitbit's only committed to a vague spring launch. For now, though, a small segment of existing users can enjoy this enhanced feature set.

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Via: The Verge

Source: Google Play

DropTag tells phones when packages are bruised before they’re opened (video)

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DropTag tells phones when packages are bruised before we open them

Many of us have had the misfortune of receiving a package that has been roughhoused in transit, and we might not have even realized it until we burrowed through the cardboard and tape. Cambridge Consultants' upcoming DropTag might just serve as the insurance we need. The badge can detect a drop or other violent motion, like earlier sensors, but carries Bluetooth 4.0 to transmit data and alerts in real-time to a mobile app, whether it's on the courier's smartphone or a tablet at home. As one watch-grade battery could power the sensor for weeks, we could know whether the box took a tumble at the warehouse or at the door -- a help not just for customers wanting their items intact, but for companies that can avoid delivering already-broken goods. At less than $2 in raw costs, DropTags would be cheap enough to slap on many packages. We just need Cambridge to line up clients to make this a reality and, just possibly, prevent a few overly hasty couriers from long-bombing our orders.

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Source: Cambridge Consultants

Kensington wants you to be very afraid of losing your iPhone, buy its $60 Proximo system

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Kensington wants you to be very afraid of losing your iPhone, buy its $60 Proximo system

A mobile phone is lost or stolen every 3.5 seconds, warns Kensington, handily quoting data from 2011. The company's solution is simple: a low-power wireless fob that stays in your pocket and sounds the alarm if you move too far away from your iPhone 5 or 4S. The idea has been around for a while, of course, and it's proving popular elsewhere at CES right now, but the $60 Proximo Starter Kit -- now available for pre-order -- adds a couple more components. As well as the fob, you also get a tag that can be attached to other valuables and an iOS app that allows the monitoring of up to four further tags (priced at $25 each) simultaneously. Each fob and tag lasts up to six months thanks to low-power Bluetooth 4.0, and the CR2032 battery should be easy enough to switch out. Calm your separation anxiety further with the press release after the break.

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Source: Kensington

Fitbit Flex hands-on at CES 2013 (video)

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Fitbit Flex handson at CES 2013

Fitbit's been in the fitness-tracking game for a while now, but today marks its first official entry into the wearable band space. Shown off here at CES 2013, the Flex is a wireless band much in the vein of Nike's Fuelband and Jawbone's rebooted Up. But while it shares many similarities with those existing products, there are a few very notable areas where it breaks apart from the pack-- namely, the inclusion of Bluetooth 4.0. Now, health nuts can wirelessly update their stats to an iPhone or limited selection of Android (!) devices via that standard without having to manually sync.

While it doesn't boast the Yves Behar design that Jawbone fancies, the Flex should prove to be a welcome accessory for fashion conscious consumers. To that end, it comes in five different colors -- navy, black, tangerine, slate and teal -- and features a thin strip of LEDs that can be activated by a simple tap. Those lights, five in total, each represent 20-percent towards a user's assigned goal, so current progress can be easily monitored. And, as you might expect, there's a vibration motor within the band to alert users based on settings made from the companion app.

The Flex is indeed a waterproof product and can be worn in the shower or even the swimming pool, though we wouldn't advise you take it diving. Despite this H20 resistance, the Flex won't track your butterfly strokes (or doggie paddles), but it will keep count of your steps, calories burned, sleep and distance walked.

Perhaps one of the most welcome innovations of this particular wearable is its ability to play friendly with Android -- specifically, the Samsung Galaxy Note II and Galaxy S III. Users who purchase this band will be able to download that app from Google Play at the end of January. Further, there's one additional perk for Android users: the ability to tap-to-pair with NFC. In theory, this functionality should provide users with easy access to their stats, but we (in addition to the company's many reps) had significant trouble triggering the action on repeated occasions.

If you've been monitoring the fitness-tracking space, but have been holding out for a band that offers just a little extra, then it's worth considering the Flex. You can look for it to hit this spring for $100. Stay tuned for a video demo of the Flex in action.

Gallery: Fitbit Flex wristband hands-on

Sarah Silbert contributed to this report.

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FlipSide case for iPhone packs stealthy game controls, plays on solar power (video)

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FlipSide case for iPhone packs stealthy game controls, plays on solar power video

The perpetual challenge of developing an iPhone-friendly gamepad (or any phone-oriented gamepad) is the bulk, either for a gargantuan case or else a separate controller. If Justice Frangipane's team and iDevices have their way, that clunkiness will be a distant memory. Their proposed FlipSide case for iPhones (we see a prototype here) centers on Bluetooth 4.0 gamepad controls that stay clipped to the back when just checking email, but attach to the front for playtime. They'll save us from hunting down a wall outlet, too; the combination of a sensitive solar cell and a thin film battery from Infinite Power Solutions should keep the case powered up through even indoor lighting. The only real challenge is getting the case produced, as Frangipane is looking for crowdfunding to make the FlipSide a reality. Provided his group makes its donation target, though, there's the prospect of an Android version -- so those who don't play the iOS way could still reap the rewards if they chip in at the source link.

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Source: Flipside (Kickstarter)

Cookoo analog smart watch makes early debut in Hong Kong, we go hands-on (video)

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Cookoo analog smart watch makes early debut in Hong Kong, we go hands-on

Remember the Cookoo smart watch? For those who don't know, 'tis an analog watch with a notification display plus Bluetooth 4.0 low energy connectivity, and it prides itself for its much longer battery life compared to other smart watches. We originally covered it as a Kickstarter project back in May, and seven months later we found ourselves at its humble launch event in Hong Kong. That's right, it turns out that ConnecteDevice, the company behind this gadget, is based in said city; though it did also emphasize its multinational effort on this project -- French design, American engineering, Indian plus European coding, and Hong Kong plus Shenzhen R&D on integration and manufacturing. Interestingly, the company decided to make a commercial debut in its home town ahead of the bigger launch at CES next month. Read on to see how we got on with this wearable -- there's a hands-on video after the break as well.

Gallery: Cookoo analog smart watch makes early debut in Hong Kong, we go hands-on

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Source: Cookoo

Broadcom intros quad-combo, fast single-card wireless chipsets that put NFC at center stage

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Broadcom chip shot

Broadcom wants NFC to flow like water, to the point where we can pair speakers and share content between phones like it's no big deal. Accordingly, it's launching two wireless chipsets that should sate both the mobile masses as well as performance lovers. The BCM43341 is reportedly the first to put official NFC support side-by-side with 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 and FM radio in a single chip, taking a long stride towards smaller, cheaper phones with NFC tucked inside. We'll admit that we're drawn more to the speed demon of the pair, the BCM20793: the single-card design combines NFC with a 433Mbps implementation of 802.11n WiFi, raising the prospect of some very fast device-to-device Miracast and WiFi Direct connections in more advanced phones and tablets. Both parts should go into full production in the first quarter of 2013, which gives us enough time to prepare for Broadcom's vision of a tap-to-send future.

Continue reading Broadcom intros quad-combo, fast single-card wireless chipsets that put NFC at center stage

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Source: Broadcom

Casio’s iPhone-friendly G-Shock finally out, will adorn wrists for $180

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Casio's iPhonefriendly GShock finally out for $180

It seems Casio's G-Shock GB6900 hasn't been mindful of its own raison d'être, turning up much later than expected. After making its first appearance way back in March 2011, rolling through FCC in July the same year, and then reportedly getting stalled by floods in Thailand, the Bluetooth 4.0-packing smart watch is finally available stateside for $180. Tardiness notwithstanding, the wearable gizmo is typically defiant of shock and water. However, its hero feature is hooking up with your iPhone (4S or newer) to sync time, throw up call / email alerts and letting you locate your misplaced smartphone. And while the timekeeper can't let you be mayor, reveal objects' secrets or serve up apps, at least it doesn't hurt your wallet as much as some of its rivals.

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Source: Casio

MIO Alpha watch goes on sale for $199, touts high-grade heart monitoring on the run

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MIO Alpha watch goes on sale, touts EKGgrade heart monitoring on the run

As popular as heart rate monitors can be for runners looking to improve their health, they're often definitions of compromise that require bulky gear or direct finger contact to reliably find the heartbeat. MIO's newly available Alpha watch may be just the remedy for those who aren't content to bulk up or slow down to avoid that guesswork. The monitor uses an electro-optical cell and a pair of light beams to track the volume of blood under the wrist, and compensates for the usual jostling through a motion sensor; the result is a purportedly very high level of accuracy at up to a 12MPH pace without wearing ungainly extras. For most, the catch will be a narrow-purpose design that leaves GPS and other less cardiovascular measurements to a smartphone or bike computer paired through Bluetooth 4.0. Should most of your exercise involve striving for the perfect BPM, though, the $199 asking price for the Alpha (online for now, at retail in early 2013) could justify itself in short order.

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Source: MIO

Alliance for Wireless Power approves its specification, edges closer to truly cable-free charging

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Alliance for Wireless Power

Design by committee might not be the death knell for technology after all. Over four months after the Alliance for Wireless Power was founded in earnest, the coalition has already greenlit a specification for its partners to work from. The guideline lets device makers start building devices that charge through a magnetic resonance technology more forgiving of distance and material than Qi while simplifying the process through short-range wireless formats like Bluetooth 4.0. While the A4WP group hasn't made all the details public, it's holding meetings this week to speed up the commercialization process -- it's here that we'll learn whether the corporate bureaucracy is just as quick at getting wireless charging hardware into our hands as it is handshaking on standards.

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Alliance for Wireless Power approves its specification, edges closer to truly cable-free charging originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 Oct 2012 01:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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