Sometimes we just want things done without having to do them ourselves. This is perhaps never more true than when it comes to unpleasant tasks like counting calories and staying fit. Of all the wearables out there, not one of them automatically counts calories for you - with the exception of Healbe's new fitness wearable GoBe.
The idea is that you can just "go be you" and not have to worry all the time about typing your caloric intake into an app, stopping to take your heart rate during a run or noting each time you exercise. GoBe started out as a crowd-funding project on Indiegogo, but it quickly amassed double the amount of funding it was looking for in less than a week. The company says GoBe reached 10 percent of its goal within 24 hours after the campaign launched. Talk about an overnight success!
The main attraction to GoBe is that it is completely hands-off. You basically connect it to your smartphone via Bluetooth, download the iOS or Android companion app, strap it onto your wrist and you're ready to go.
GoBe uses what the company calls Healbe FLOW technology to constantly monitor your heart rate, caloric intake and how many calories you burn while exercising. FLOW combines the data it receives from three different sensors and processes the data with an algorithm, which is made specifically for the purpose of counting calories via the glucose count in the cells of your skin. Other sensors track your heart rate and metabolic rate all the time to give you a well-rounded understanding of your body's state.
Other fitness wearables require users to actively remember to count calories, record exercises data or take their own heart rate. The average person just doesn't do these things everyday, no matter what their new year's resolution was. Those looking to get fit and stay fit need a bit more help. GoBe aims to meet those real-life demands for customers.
"We live in an age of information, and yet 98 percent of diets fail. Wearable technologies are trying to solve this problem, but I found that none had succeeded in making it easy for people to know whether they're getting the right amount of food, water, exercise and sleep," said Healbe founder and CEO Artem Shipitsyn in a statement.
As far as looks go, GoBe may not be the prettiest wearable you've ever seen, but it certainly looks a lot like others out there on the market already. It features a plain, black band, a small oval-shaped area that looks like a speaker grill. This is where the sensors are, which come into contact with your skin to take glucose measurements and more. GoBe is also waterproof, so if you like to swim or run in the rain, you're safe. Healbe claims that GoBe's battery lasts for three days before you have to charge it. When it's out of juice, just plug it in with a USB charger.
When GoBe goes on sale, it will cost $299.99, but those who preorder from the company website or Indiegogo can get it for $189. Delivery is expected in June 2014.
