“In
the operating room, I can’t have errors when my patients are asleep. “I need to
know what they’re doing all the time. So I took this particular technology, and
applied it to what we’re doing. A through-the-tissue Approach is more accurate.
This is the same way we do it in the OR. We’re measuring blood flow and oxygen
that’s bound—or, in this case, not bound—to hemoglobin.”
Dr. Eric Hensen, ENT (Ear,
Nose and Throat) and Freewavz Inventor in a conversation with TechHive Writer,
Jon Phillips on Tuesday June 24th 2014
Wearables
seem to want to take over all of your senses! Their earlier incarnations were
mostly in the form of Fitness Trackers such as the Fitbit Force, the Jawbone
Up24 and the Nike Fuelband SE as described in my Geezam blog article entitled “Caribbean
rides the Fitness Craze as Nike Fuelband SE making Apple iPhone users healthier”.
Worn
mainly on the wrist, they were fairly standard in both their wireless interface
via Bluetooth 4.0 with smartphones and Tablets (mainly Apple) to communicate
the various Health Metrics they collected on your every activity from running
to even Yoga!
 |
Now,
they've slowly crawling up your elbows and straight to your brain. at least,
that what seems to be happening with the latest Kickstarter project, Freewavz
Earphones, which double as both Music to your Ears and Fitness Tracker as
stated in “FreeWavz
wireless Earphones use medical-style sensors to record heart rate data”, published
Jun 24, 2014 3:15 AM by Jon Phillips, Techhive.
Started
Monday June 23rd 2014, this kickstarter as of Wednesday June 25th
2014 has 141 backers who've so far pledged US$$25,021. Their ambition goal is a
lofty US$300,000 and has to be achieved in the next 42 days as this kickstarter
ends on Thursday, August 7th 2014 7:05 AM EST. The US$300 Freewavz
Earphones is expected to start delivering pairs of their nifty earbuds by
October 2014.
So
far, with only two (2) days gone, they've already reached a little under 10% of
that target, suggesting that at this pace, they'll hit their goal in the next
twenty (20) days. Thus it's not a blockbuster like other kickstarters I've
written about, such as my most recent article on the US$149 PocketScan Document
Scanner as stated in my blog article
entitled “The
PocketScan surpasses US$50,000 on Kickstarter – Scanning the World of Images on
Sweep at a Time”, but it’s headed in the right direction, one US$1 at a
time!
So
what makes the Freewavz
Earphones stand out so much that I’d write about it? After all, it isn’t
unique as there’s the LG Heart Rate Headphones that sports similar features as
described in “LG
Heart Rate Earphones review: a fitness wearable with good sound and accurate
data”, published Jun 2, 2014 4:30 AM by Jon Phillips, Techhive.
For
one, the Inventor himself, Dr. Eric Hensen, is an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat),
someone who you'd think would be loaded with cash and thus have the wherewithal
to make this project on his own or even get a loan from his bank to fund this
project. That leads to the next reason, being as much of the technology that
the Freewavz
Earphones is also found in the very same medical equiptment that this
doctor works with on a daily basis.
Counting Blood Cells as
you Nod Your Head with this Bluetooth Hands-Free Headset
 |
Combined
with the Pulse Oximeter Sensor, also in each Freewavz
Earphones, to count heartbeats by counting the change in luminosity of a
small LED Laser light shone through the earlobe, the Freewavz
Earphones tracks the following metrics:
1.
Calories (subject to movement)
2.
Current time
3.
Distance
4.
Duration of Exercise
5.
Heart rate
6.
O2 saturation
According
to Dr. Eric Hensen, the Pulse Oximeter Sensor is the same standard device used
in hospitals to keep track of the heart-rate of patients when they're sleeping
and is tried and tested technology. In fact, it's as accurate as an EEG
(Electro-Encephalo Graph) monitor placed on your chest.
These
Fitness Metrics are being constantly relayed to your smartphone which most
likely will be strapped to your arm or within 30 m while you exercise. Even
better, as your exercise, the Freewavz
Earphones will echo your Fitness Metrics through your Earphones, making
reaching for your smartphone to check your Freewavz App unnecessary.
The
Freewavz
Earphones work like any high-fidelity Earphones, sporting some neat add-on
only an ENT would cook up in his spare time. For one, it has a feature called
Environmental Listen-Through that allows you to keep an Ear on the road while
you focus on your exercise routine. Basically what this is really two (2) sets
of microphones that are oriented to listen to ambient noise from your
surroundings.
The
first set are positioned just below the Ear closer to the mouth and are main
for the user to issue hands-free Voice Commands to their Bluetooth connected
smartphones. The second set of microphones is just above the Ear buds and is
positioned to hear the surrounding environment and come into play if you’re
jogging or exercising outdoors. Using your smartphone, you can adjust the ratio
of Music to Environmental Listen Through for each Freewavz
Earphones separately as follows:
1.
75% music, 25% listen-through
2.
50% music, 50% listen-through
3.
25% music, 75% listen-through
4.
0% music, 100% listen-through
In
fact they're so independent, that if you and a friend are working out, you can
listen to your music on one Earphone while the friend, once they're within 30m,
can listen on the other Earphone. In fact, each fitness fanatic can use each Freewavz
Earphones separately on their own smartphones, once they've downloaded the App
and programmed it with their unique profiles. Why would you share an Earphone
with ANY friend, I have no idea, but this is a great way for husbands and wives
to work together or separately while still maintaining the team vibe!
 |
Aside
from sporting Independent Left/Right Volume Control & Equalizers (like any
pair of Headphones!), it also has built in Ear Safeguards that prevent your
ears being exposed to sound above a certain level, thus preventing damage to
the Inner Ear. Additionally, you can have the Freewavz
Earphones voice your Fitness Metrics through your Earphones, removing the
need to reach for your smartphone to tap that App and pull up the data.
Even
more interesting, it doubles as a Bluetooth Hands-Free Headset, allowing you to
make and receive phone calls even while your music is on full blast and you're
jogging or doing other strenuous exercise that you normal make you miss those
important calls. This combined with their snug hard-to-shake-off fit makes the Freewavz
Earphones have near perfect sound delivery for a pair of US$300 Earphones
that just a little cheaper than $449 high-end Beats by Dr. Dre Headphones.
So,
got US$300 burning a hole in your pocket? If you order one now from the Freewavz
Earphones Kickstarter , you can end up giving the Freewavz
Earphones by Dr. Hensen as a unique gift to the Fitness Fanatic in your
Life.
Check
the Link below to join
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