Turn your phone into a baseball speed radar with Scoutee

Baseball pitchers throw many balls and some may seem to be faster than ever, but it’s hard to determine true speeds without expensive, bulky equipment. Scoutee aims to end all your pitching woes by becoming your very own portable baseball speed detector, providing you with all the data you need to improve your skills or impress friends, coaches and even scouts.

As it goes with many of these innovative startup products, the Scoutee is being crowd-funded on Kickstarter. So far it has collected over $22,000 out of the $50,000 pledge goal, but this is a very promising number considering the campaign is new and still has 30 days to go.

What is this Scoutee thing all about, then? This is a tiny devices that can be attached to the back of your phone, or one can simply place it anywhere and connect to it wirelessly. The idea is that it needs to be able to capture the baseball’s movement. It’s small and literally fits in the palm of your hand. After being put to action, Scoutee can measure ball speeds and transfer all data to the official app via Bluetooth (works with both Android and iOS).

The Scoutee and its app can do much more than just measure ball speeds, though. This gadgets can also determine parameters such as type, location and results. Then all the data gets saved in the application, so you can keep a detailed record of your progress. Furthermore, the user has the ability to record a video of his/her pitching technique while it measures the speed. It uses the phone’s camera, then simply overlays clips to your data so you may further improve your skills or show off what your current competence.

Oh, and other types of athletes need not be jealous. The Scoutee team claims Scoutee actually works with any ball, so everyone can take advantage of this new product.

Want in? We have to tell you right off the bat that this thing won’t exactly be affordable. The Scoutee is expected to cost $299 upon official release. The good news is Kickstarter backers will be able to score one at a much lower price. The super early bird offers are all gone by now, but some of you will still be able to get it for $149. When that offer ends, the Scoutee can be had for as low as $169.

Not cheap, but definitely a good discount over the final price. And it sure beats carrying all that old radar equipment we are used to. Just go and visit the Kickstarter page to learn more about Scoutee. But don’t forget to hit the comments and tell us what you think of this new gadget. Are you getting one? Also, can you think of any other more convenient or cheaper alternatives?