Smartwatches and Android Wear are becoming increasingly common among users, with an increase in choices, affordability and usage. A smartwatch can be an expensive purchase. With this comes the buyer’s confusion among a variety of similarly priced smartwatches, different in nifty little features, and comfort in use that is highly affected by personal taste. This is where Lumoid comes in. Founded in 2013, this company lets users try various gadgets for a small fee without going through the trouble of buying it on pure instincts and reviews. And now, smartwatches being one of the most sought-after pieces of technology, Lumoid allows you to rent some of the popular Android Wear-based smartwatches at a price of $45.
Lumoid will allow the customer to use a pack of 4 devices for a 2 week time, after which if the client decides to retain one of the devices, $25 is waived off the price of the desired smartwatch, making the cost of the effectively $20. The money is retained as trial fee if the customer decides not to purchase any of the smartwatches. The watches that Lumoid include in the test pack are significantly dated and options need an upgrade to the latest models to remain relevant in the market. The package contains Asus ZenWatch, LG G Watch, Moto 360, Samsung Gear Live, also including a Pebble in the lot. With a lot of exciting announcements and launches being made regarding smartwatches in IFA 2015, it will take some time for Lumoid to stock up the new devices and getting ready to rent them out. The potential of Lumoid rests in its ability to provide the new devices launched as soon as possible, which will make the service useful in choosing the right device for the right user. Lumoid also has a rent to use program for drones and Google Glass, though the latter has been permanently discontinued from the market. Unfortunately the service is only available in the United States, with no provisions for international users to utilize the service, which limits its impact on the market.
The process of getting your hands on the devices is pretty straightforward, with the user having to make a choice about how many devices required and providing their payment and shipping details. Lumoid promises to send the products by UPS or FedEx. After the end of the trial, the user is required to send all the devices back by a prepaid postal service included in the package received. Lumoid, a San Francisco-based startup first started renting gadgets in 2014, and launched Lumoid Locals in San Francisco a few days later, a service that lets them rent camera equipment to users.