Wristband Records Shows When You Doze Off
Any wearable band can monitor your sleep habits, but only one of them will do anything about them. The KipstR is an experimental wristband that monitors when a user falls asleep and proceeds to pause and record whatever show he or she is watching at the time.
Virgin Media issued a statement about KipstR, which was developed by two teen tech students. Ryan Oliver and Jonathan Kingsley, 14 and 15 respectively, teamed up with Virgin in order to sync up a sleep monitor and a TiVo box for their ambitious concept.
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The idea behind the band is simple: 3D print a wearable device with a pulse-oximeter, which can tell whether a user is asleep or awake. Then, tie the pulse-oximeter into a TiVo's pause, play and record features. If a user falls asleep, the program pauses and records. If he or she snaps awake, it resumes.
Although it's an unconventional idea, KipstR is not merely a tech demo. Virgin is currently investigating how the band could work its way into living rooms throughout Great Britain. However, the link to join the product's beta program is broken at present. Stay tuned for new developments.
Whether falling asleep in front of the TV is really a pressing problem in your life, the KipstR is still a clever use for a wearable band. Acute readers may recall that Tom's Guide covered a very similar experiment in early 2014 involving Netflix and a Fitbit. Clearly, viewers have spoken, and they want to nap in front of the TV without missing a moment of their favorite shows.
Marshall Honorof is a Staff Writer for Tom's Guide. Contact him at mhonorof@tomsguide.com. Follow him @marshallhonorof. Follow us @tomsguide, on Facebook and on Google+.
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