A new product promises to let you make Facebook friends by simply shaking hands or exchanging a high-five. It’s called the Social Bangle and is being developed by a company called Hicon.
The bangles use Bluetooth to sync up to an app on your smartphone and allow you to interact with your social media accounts using little buttons on the bangle. The buttons are interchangable and can be customized for the social media accounts of the user. The overall look of it gives something like the look of a charm bracelet with the colorful plastic buttons serving as the charms.
When you have an alert on a social media account, the button will light up and vibrate gently to notify you. It works with accounts like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linked In, Pinterest, Viber, WhatsApp and Google Plus.
The company also says the devices will let you transfer information to others wearing the bangle by simply shaking hands or exchanging high-fives. The same way people used to make friends before there was social media.
It also offers a social matching feature that will light up and vibrate whenever you’re near another user who shares your interests. I guess that saves you the trouble of talking to people to find out if they share your interests.
The bracelet will also light up and vibrate to notify you of incoming call and appointments on your calendar.
Hicon is now in the middle of a crowfunding campaign to raise $40,000 as it gets ready to kick off mass production. With a suggested retail price of $89, it’s at the low end of the wearable tech market. With the bright colors and buttons, it seems like something that would appeal to a younger crowd. I can easily envision my college-aged self wanting one of them.
~ Cynthia