You see a lot of stuff at CES, and much of it is hard to imagine ever getting a commercial release. So colour me slightly surprised that Samsung’s WELT has appeared on Kickstarter, and already hit its funding target.
The WELT – which still makes it sound more like a WebMD skin-lesion diagnosis than something you would actively want to wear – is Samsung’s smart belt. The buckle has a micro-USB port that charges the belt for over 20 days’ usage. During that time, the belt will track your steps and sitting time, monitor your waistline, and send you notifications if you’re pigging out to the degree that your belt is creaking under the strain. If you’re the kind of person who somehow manages to miss the traditional notification of this – that your trousers are tightening – then maybe this product is for you.
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If it is, then you have a number of options. The WELT comes in “casual”, “classic”, “premium” and “Kickstarter Limited Edition” flavours, ranging from between $99 (~£74) and $199 (~£149) per belt. There was a super-early-bird discount that could have seen you getting a WELT casual for $69 (~£52), but it has unaccountably sold out. Hard as it is to believe, the WELT will see the light of day, having at the time of writing hit $40,265 of its $30,000 goal.
The shipping date is estimated as being January 2017, which means that should you purchase one, you’ll just have to trust your old-fashioned sensors to avoid eating too much Christmas dinner. Any excuse, eh?
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