Wearable Computing & Fashion News - Page 10

Nike's original self-lacing shoes gave Back to the Future fans as close to what they wanted: self-lacing shoes that Marty McFly had in 2015, with the original Adapt BB shoes dropping in January 2019.

But now Nike is preparing the next-gen self-lacing Adapt BB 2.0 shoes, designed by Ben Nethongkome. The new shoes feature fore-foot Zoom, compared to the Cushion used in the original Adapt BB shoes. The midsole stack height has been re-jigged for improved heel-to-toe movement, too.

You can see from the above photos that the design of the Nike Adapt BB 2.0 shoes is been improved, and they look awesome. The shoe is also even easier to put on, with early adopters of the original Adapt BB shoes saying that while they were awesome (come on, self-lacing shoes) they were annoying to put on.

PUMA has announced that it is stepping into the gaming market, but they aren't making games. Instead, they are making footwear for gamers.

In a new video that was released onto the PUMA Group YouTube Channel, PUMA has announced what is called 'Active Gaming Footwear'. According to the video, PUMA has been in "extensive talks with professional gamers" and has since discovered there is a need for a "sock-like shoe".

This new design of sock/shoe is super lightweight and is designed for "indoor and in-arena use". It also comes with "seamless comfort, support and grip so gamers can adapt to different active gaming modes and game their best." Not only does it come with comfort as any sock/shoe should, but it also comes with different modes. According to the official PUMA website, the Active Gaming Footwear has three modes. I have listed them in the entirety of this article. The Active Gaming Footwear comes in at $105 USD.

Google unveiled its from-the-future Project Glass all the way back in 2012 for an eye-opening $1500 at the time, and while Google Glass Explorer Edition was a fun ride -- that ride is close to being over.

The company has just announced Google Glass Explorer Edition has one more update before Google ends support for it, with Google explaining that Google Glass Explorer Edition owners will have to manually download, unzip, and then install the latest update for their wearable.

Google explains: "Glass Explorer Edition is receiving a final update that you will need to manually install. After February 25, 2020, this update removes the need and ability to use your Google account on Glass. It also removes Glass' connection to backend services. This update is available now and should be installed so you can continue using your device without issues".

Disney is ramping up to the release of Star Wars: Rise of the Skywalker in theaters in the coming weeks, with the company teaming up with Adidas on some themed basketball shoes.

Enter the new Star Wars x Adidas collection of basketball shoes, which will go on sale on November 1. The company will be offering up R2-D2 and Stormtrooper variants of the Nite Jogger, while Adidas will also throw up the Pro Next 2019 with Light Side and Dark Side graphics (as you see in the image above).

Adidas will also have special versions of the Harden Vol. 4, Dame 5, D Rose 10, D.O.N. Issue #1, and Crazy 1 shoes. The entire collection of Star Wars x Adidas Basketball shoes will be available on Adidas.com and select Adidas retailers starting November 1.

Amazon have announced their first iteration of smart-jewelry, coming in the form of rings that allow users to take Alex anywhere.

Introducing Amazon's Alex-powered smart-ring wearable, The Echo Loop. From the above image, you can see that The Echo Loop is a thick-banded black ring. Its made out of titanium and has a tiny button located in the middle of the ring if you look close enough. According to Engadget who got to go hands-on with the new wearable, the Echo Loop requires users to press the small button to activate Alexa, and then users must raise their hand to the small microphone on the ring so the command can be heard.

Engadget's Nicole Lee said she felt like she was in a "goofy spy movie" as she would have to raise her had to her mouth to speak into the ring and then to her ear to hear the response. Lee also mentions that Echo Ring vibrates a little when Alexa is listening and whenever the user gets notifications. It is also detailed that the ring comes in four size variants; small, medium, large and extra large. Battery life isn't so good for the time being as Amazon says the ring will last about a single day before it needs charging. The Echo Loop retails for $130, for more information check out this link here.

Cyberpunk 2077 is no doubt of the most anticipated games to release during 2020, and if you are already a hardcore fan then you might want to check out these awesome Cyberpunk 2077 themed sneakers.

The sneakers were snapped by CD Projekt Red's publicist, Fabian Mario Doehla, and shared to his instagram account. The sneakers are a custom design on some Air Max 720 Saturns by FRE Customs and Footlocker.

The shoes were shown off at Gamescom 2019, and everyday some lucky fans of Cyberpunk 2077 were able to win their very own pair. These shoes weren't the only ones that were custom designed and on showcase, we can also see some custom Gears of War 5 Vans, Halo: The Master Chief Collection in Nike Air Max 720's, custom 4 Pirelli-branded Replicat-X for Forza Horizon and more. Cyberpunk 2077 will be launched on the PS4, Xbox One and PC on April 16th. Cyberpunk 2077 recently got some awesome 4K screenshots released, check them out here.

Firstly, because why not right? Why wouldn't you want a jacket that reflects every color in the visible spectrum? I mean, if you want to stand out a party, here if your next purchase.

Vollebak has used lasers to embed over 2 billion microscopic glass spheres onto the surface of their Vollebak black squid jacket. The design idea behind the jacket is to replicate the elements of a squid's biological survival necessities across three layers of fabric. Vollebak co-founder, Steve Tidball spoke out about the design, saying "The black squid jacket focuses on replicating the elements of squid skin that make it hyper-visible. With over two billion of them [glass spheres] embedded in resin on the jacket's surface, and over 40,000 in every single square centimeter, they're invisible to the naked eye."

He continues and says "When light hits the jacket, it travels through the curved surface of these black glass spheres and strikes the back of them, before being reflected back at the original light source and scattered away from it simultaneously, so that the fabric looks like it's emitting light." The jacket is currently priced at $995 and is available in only one color (I wonder why).

Sony is aware that the future will be similar to the jacket that Marty McFly wore in Back to the Future II, with the Japanese electronics giant stepping into the world of wearable air conditioners. This is the Sony Reon Pocket, check it out:

Sony launched a crowdfunding campaign for a wearable AC that sits in the back of your shirt to keep you cool, with the product ending up in the Reon Pocket. The upcoming Reon Pocket can be configured with an app that you have on your smartphone, where it will reduce the temperature of your back from 97F to 73F which is a big difference.

The new Reon Pocket will reportedly sell for around $117, with the portable and wearable AC to launch in Japan first. The first iteration will have a battery that will last for around one hour, and a release window of March 2020 -- perfect for the Tokyo 2020 summer Olympics. If it launches in Japan in March 2020 we should expect it in the US and other regions in late-2020 and into 2021.

Google released their first wearable years ago now with the consumer-focused Google Glass not doing too well in the market, with Google pivoting to the enterprise market with Google Glass Enterprise Edition and now we're seeing the markings of new Google Glass Enterprise headset.

The new Google Glass Enterprise Edition has popped up over at 9to5Google, with the second-gen wearable having a few different, and significant changes. First off, we have fast-charging through a new USB-C port, as well as a bunch of internal changes with a newer Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 processor, and 3GB of RAM joining the second-gen Glass Enterprise Edition wearable. Inside, we also have Bluetooth 5.0, LTE, and 802.11ac Wi-Fi connectivity.

The camera has also been upgraded in a big way, moving from an 8-megapixel sensor to a purported 32-megapixel sensor that would see 4K 30FPS and 1080p 60FPS video recording abilities.

We've all wanted to wear the self-lacing shoes that Marty McFly wore in Back to the Future II, and now that Nike has launched their awesome Adapt BB kicks, there are some niggly issues.

Now that Nike's new Adapt BB sneakers are in the wild, owners are complaining that their shoes are being bricked when being updated over the Android app. There are reports on the Google Play Store with reviews stating that the shoes "stop working after the update". You can obviously still wear them, but the self-lacing part of the Nike Adapt BB sneakers is a big, well, the entire part of the shoes I guess.

I'd be pretty bloody pissed off if I plonked down $350 on a pair of self-lacing shoes that turned out to be duds post-update, and even more so as it seems to be affecting Android users with iPhone owners reporting they have no issues updating the Nike Adapt BB shoes. If you update the shoes through the iPhone and then pair them afterwards on your Android smartphone, you should be alright - but you shouldn't need to do that.