Startup company Farasha LLC is presenting a new smartwatch on Kickstarter, called the SOWATCH and described as “the world’s first autonomous smartwatch” capable of tracking cardiovascular health and blood pressure, all the while allowing users to customize their workouts and prevent diseases. In other words, the smartwatch in question aims to deliver detailed health information along with the benefits of a fitness tracker, and interestingly enough the smartwatch will take advantage of built-in GPS connectivity (not unlike the Samsung Gear S3), meaning that it will work without being paired to a smartphone.
According to the official product description, SOWATCH will be waterproof and will be resistant to “extreme weather”. Although detailed hardware specifications are missing in certain areas, the product will reportedly hold “up to 10 days of charge”, making it one of the most power-efficient fitness trackers and smartwatches on the market. The SOWATCH is equipped with a variety of sensors including an EGC, and is able to detect the wearer’s heart rate frequency as well as heart rate variability. Furthermore, the SOWATCH is apparently the first wearable device able to estimate Systolic and Diastolic Blood pressure, which can technically help in preventing strokes and heart attacks. In addition, a thermometer will read the wearer’s temperature and alert the user of fever or hypothermia, and the device will have the ability to detect the amount of oxygenated hemoglobin in the blood. The watch is equipped with a pedometer and can keep track of your sleep quality as well as detect sleep disorders by combining heart rate and accelerometer data. Last but not least, the smartwatch offers different workout modes including Competition mode, Free Workout, and Coach, and claims to be smart enough to prevent over-training and injuries. It’s also interesting to note that the SOWATCH will have the ability to alert your physician or family members in risk situations.
It all sounds very promising but as is always the case, Kickstarter campaigns can deliver impressive and equally disappointing products. There’s always a risk of not getting your money’s worth when backing a project, but then again many great products have been born out of Kickstarter before. In any case, at the time of writing a total of $178,355 has been pledged by 1,467 backers with 36 more days to go before the campaign ends. The project also has several stretch goals ahead; the first one being set at the $200,000 mark and promising synchronization with fitness-tracking applications like Runtastic, myfitnesspal, Apple’s HealthKit and more. The lowest pledge for securing a SOWATCH was worth $99, however, it is no longer available, but prospective backers can still pledge $105 or more. The product has an estimated delivery date of March 2017.
