Connected accessory lands on Kickstarter, promising to make voice controls easier
Vring describes itself as the first wearable to focus on voice-control – which may be a bit of a stretch – but it’s definitely its raison d’être.
The smart accessory, which is intended to be either a (massive) ring or a bracelet, connects to your smartphone and offers you easy, according to the promo video at least, voice controls whereby short commands such as “lights” or “my music” fires up the relevant app on your phone – i.e. turning a Philips Hue lamp on, or playing your stored MP3s.
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Voice gestures are extended to Google searches, Chromecast controls, note taking, smart appliance connectivity and a find-my-phone feature.
“The average person spends 90 minutes on their cell phone every day,” said Canner Tang, founder of Whynot Tech – the company behind Vring. “We developed Vring to give people more freedom to experience life and spend time with family and friends.
“Our goal is to make life easier, and homes smarter by using the latest advancements in voice-recognition technology.”
That’s a bit of a wishy-washy marketing statement, we know – and we’re not sure that Vring will actually make people spend less time on their phones. Surely if users do a Google search, or take a note, they’ll end up looking at the results on their phone?
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In terms of design, it’s fairly chunky, if somewhat geek-chic. The aluminum unibody frame comes in three different colours and there are slick looking metallic straps for the bracelet option.
The battery can take 300 commands before it needs a charge and will last up to three days on standby.
Whynot Tech is looking for $50,000 on Kickstarter – $109 is the early bird price if you’re interested.
