Get the Stress Out, Instead of Being Stressed Out

Ever feel a little – no know – stressed out. I think I can relate, or at least so I’m told. For those who have a hard time coping with stress there is hope. The emWave PSR (Personal Stress Reliever) is a little device that might just be the next best thing to having a full-blown meltdown.

The device actually (and according to its makers effectively) measures stress levels, and thus teaches users hot to shift out of stressful states. It works by measuring the variations between heart beats (heart coherence), which is reflective of real-time changes that occur in our mental and emotional state. Users are provided with real-time feedback via colored lights and sounds, so that they can known when they’re reached a stressful situation and can use methods to cope with it. With practice users can build new internal responses to stress and how to get out of the stressful situations.

The product, which has won numerous awards including the Last Gadget Standing People’s Choice Award at the International Consumer Electronics Show, as well as an innovation award from the American Institute of Stress, is about the size of a small mobile phone and is currently available through major online retailers as well as the developer’s own site.

HeartMath Official Website

Consumer Electronics Show Releases More Info on Sports and Fitness Tech Summit

It seems we were just a year early. We launched KineticShift.com at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show back in January. Now for 2011, the CEA (Consumer Electronics Association) seems to have technology and fitness on the brain as well. Continue reading Consumer Electronics Show Releases More Info on Sports and Fitness Tech Summit

Philips Gets Activa at IFA

At this month’s IFA conference in Berlin Dutch consumer electronics maker Philips once again reaffirmed that it was going to remain dedicated to fitness, as it showcased its Activa portable music player. The device was unveiled earlier this year at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, but this month Philips offered a bit more information on this “much more than an MP3 player” device.

While the Philips Activia is going to go head to head with the iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano and iPod Touch, it has some features that the iPod simply can’t touch. The Activa will keep track of fitness progress and while there is some musical shuffling of sorts, it actually picks songs to provide vocal feedback and plays music to match the tempo of your workout. Continue reading Philips Gets Activa at IFA

CES 2011 to Focus on Lifestyle

As long time attendees of the Consumer Electronics Show we at KineticShift.com know there are plenty of “active” technology to see, but most of the show has been far more focused on passive entertainment. It is after all the show about HDTV, 3D, MP3, etc. But beginning with the CES 2011 the show organizers have realized that the “digital couch potato syndrome” is a growing concern.

Thus with next January’s event CES will include a Lifestyle Series that will include fitness tech to make workouts and outdoor activities safer, more fun and most importantly more effective. The trade show will include several programs including Kids@play, and Mommy Tech, as well as the Digital Health Summit, which will look at the convergence of technology and health care. We’ll be sure to report more as CES gets closer.

CES 2011 Official Website