One of the biggest problems with any wearable electronic device is that they need electricity to operate. And in most cases, this means that you need to use batteries. And batteries must be replaced or recharged. And the more often you have to replace or recharge, the less likely you are to keep using it. This is one of the problems that the English company Acticheck hopes to address with its Assure band. Using smart power management, it is designed to run for two years without recharging.
The company’s website is short on details, but an article from Smithers Apex indicates that the device is targeted at monitoring elderly and chronically ill patients. The article states that the Assure “continuously analyses a series of physiological data, including body temperature with its on-board sensors.” It also can send alerts through a smartphone or other communication device if the measures fall outside predefined limits, and the wearer can also press a button to summon help if needed.
According to the company website, they intend to launch a Kickstarter campaign for the product at the end of this year or early next year, with the goal of shipping units later in 2015. No price has been announced, but it is expected to be less than 250 Euros (about US $315). That would seem to be a fairly expensive price point for a fairly limited feature set, so it remains to be seen whether consumers will want to pay that much just to avoid having to recharge batteries.
