Best Kickstarter of the month - August 2016

Innovation never ceases in the tech world, with a slew of developers working on products that range from extremely useful to downright fun, and if you are on the look out for such tech, Kickstarter is definitely one of the best places to go. There is, admittedly, a lot to sift through, so to make your search easier, we’ve rounded up some of the best Kickstarter projects of August 2016!

Hudly

The first project is Hudly, which is a full color heads up display for your car. Hudly provides a safe and discrete way of looking at certain phone apps, without having to reach for your smartphone. Using technology that was originally intended for military aviation, drivers can quickly view information from their phone, without having to look away from the road, and is a better option that using car mounts, with the info being projected to your line of sight, and not off to the side.

There are two parts to the Hudly system. One is a projector, which is what projects the information onto a transparent optical glass panel that you can attach to your windshield. Hudly works in any car that has an OBD2 port, which is available with all cars manufactured after 1996, and if it isn’t available, you can also attach it to the cigarette lighter adapter. As far as smartphones go, it will work with the iPhone 4 or newer, as well as any Android smartphone with MHL compatibility.

Hudly really lets you take advantage of any hands free modes that may be available with your smartphone, and is particularly useful when using navigation apps. The device comes with a built-in light sensitivity sensor, to ensure that the information on the optical glass will be visible regardless of the lighting condition.

If Hudly makes it to a commercial launch, it will be available in December, priced at $249. However, as far as the Kickstarter campaign is concerned, there is still some ground to cover, with a little over $42,000 raised of the $100,000 goal, with only 6 days to go.

Gaze Desk

The Gaze Desk is a smart standing desk that you control using your smartphone via Bluetooth. It features a dual lift system that will adjust to the best position for you according to the information you add to the app, such as your height and weight, but there is a lot more to it as well.

The desk can be set up to adjust when you approach it, and will even remind you if you have been sitting for too long, by subtly sending alerts to your phone, smartwatch, or any other connected devices, or more directly, by automatically changing orientation after a certain time. Along with the desk comes a foot mat that will tell you if you are leaning heavily on one leg, and allows you to make sure that you are balancing your weight evenly while standing.

Over time, the Gaze Desk app will monitor your stats for accuracy, and if you are looking for motivation to start standing, the app can be set up to send out a tweet if you’ve been sitting for too long. With the Gaze Desk, there is no need to hunch over to type or look at your monitor, and a standing desk is definitely a great way to to avoid a lot of neck and back aches that come with being sedentary and in an awkward position for hours on end.

There are a lot of standing desks out there, but the Gaze Desk is one of the few that can be considered smart. Apart from all its features, the app can be used to connect to a variety of other smart devices, such as smart lamps, air purifiers, thermostats, and automatically activate them when you are at your desk, or at different preset times.

The creators of the Gaze Desk have even developed a Kids version, and are planning on shipping the first models in November this year. The great news is that this product is something that we should be seeing commercially, with the Kickstarter campaign having already surpassed its $100,000 goal, with 20 more days to go.

Dot

Many of us receive a lot of notifications that may not be particularly important, and unfortunately, crucial information tends to get lost in all the noise. Further, while using apps on our smartphones has become second nature, what we may not realize is that we only use a handful of apps that change in different situations. For example, navigation and music apps are more frequently used when in your car.

Dot is a device that will help you see the right information at the right place and at the right time, based on where you are or what you are doing, and is a great way to streamline everyday activities. All you have to do is download the app and place Dot somewhere useful.

Dot has many uses, including the ability to automatically launch certain apps when you are near it. For example, you can place a Dot in your car, and have it open the navigation app automatically. You can also create digital post-its with it. By placing it near a fridge, it can remind someone else in the house to do something like buy milk, or take out the trash, when they walk by it. Custom shortcut LEDs are also an option, so you can customize a Dot’s color based on certain situations, and have it work as a simple physical signal.

Dot seems like the perfect solution for anyone looking to organize and simplify their life, and what’s also great is that it will be open to developers. Dot will be available in March next year, and as far as the Kickstarter campaign is concerned, the developer is well past their goal of $20,000, with over $85,000 already raised with 12 days still to go.

STEPP

Finally, there is STEPP, which is the world’s most advanced real time running coach. STEPP includes three sensors, two for your shoes, and another that attaches to your hip, collecting data based on your movements when running. It monitors your entire lower body in depth, to make sure that you running in the most efficient way possible.

Using its app and any pair of earphones, STEPP will tell you if you are over-striding, tilting your hip too much, or even if your muscles are fatigued, and will also tell you what the exact solution for these problems are, while you are running in real time.

Regardless of whether you are a casual jogger or a more advanced runner, STEPP will cater to your needs based on the data it collects from the sensors. The app goes beyond just providing this information as well. You can view and track your progress, and will use the running history to update the training plan to help you get the most out of each run.

With 25 days to go, STEPP has raised just over $39,000 of its $70,000 Kickstarter campaign goal. If they surpass the goal, you can expect to see STEPP commercially available in July next year, with a retail price of $199.

So, there you have it for this roundup of some the best Kickstarter campaigns this month! If any of these products have caught your eye, do let us know in the comments section below.

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