Technology has made our lives easier in so many ways. It helps us to stay in touch with loved ones, it keeps us informed of events that are taking place in the world around us, and it makes it easier to navigate through our often-hectic daily lives. But sometimes we can become a bit too over reliant on our gadgets, forgetting how to accomplish simple tasks without the use of a smartphone or computer to assist us. Take for example a new “smart” water bottle that is currently seeking funding on Kickstarter that is not only designed to keep track of how much water we drink throughout the day, but also remind us when it is time to drink again.
The HidrateMe bottle comes our way courtesy of team of young entrepreneurs that met while attending the Unversity of Minnesota. The team built a prototype for a Google Startup competition that was held in Minneapolis, taking third place overall. After the competition was over they had numerous people asking them when their product would be available to purchase. TIt was then that they realized that they might actually be on to something.
In many ways, the 24 oz. bottle looks a lot like any number of other stylish water bottles that you will find on the market today. But this one comes equipped with special sensors that can keeps track of how much water you’ve consumed throughout the course of the day. Using Bluetooth technology, the bottle can then share that data with a connected smartphone running the HidrateMe app, which in turn keeps statistics of water consumtion over time. The HidrateMe, and is custom app, can encourage you to drink more when it deems that it is necessary, with the bottle even lighting up as a gentle reminder.
All of this begs the question; do we really need a water bottle to remind us when it is time to take a drink? Sure, it is recommended that adults consume two liters of fluids – or more – each and every day depending on their weight, level of activity, location, and so on. But we shouldn’t have to rely on a device to tell us that it is now time to drink water again. It just seems like common sense to want to drink when you’re thirsty, and rehydrate after a vigorous workout.
These concerns don’t seem to be deterring the HidrateMe backers however. When first launched, the Kickstarter campaign was seeking a goal of $35,000 to put the bottle into production. As of this writing it has raised nearly three times that amount with well over a month still to go. That means the project is already funded, and if everything goes according to plan, it will begin shipping to customers in December of this year.
When the bottle goes on sale to the general public, it is expected to carry a price tag of about $45.That seems like a lot of money to pay for something we should already know how to do.
