For Valentines Day I plan to gift my husband a Smart Pillow. I found the Motion Pillow while walking the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Vegas this year. Anything that improves his quality of sleep and our relationship is a gift of love I think. At CES 2020 I saw many smart products that aim to improve the quality of our life and relationship. Everything is getting smarter: dog doors, belts, pens, shoes, glasses and also the answer to a better relationship, a pillow that can stop your spouse’s snoring!
The Motion Pillow can sense where the head is positioned on the pillow. The pillow records snores and when they reach the level that action needs to be taken, it takes action. Once sound of snoring is detected, airbags inflate, gently turning the sleeping person’s head. The company that makes the pillow is launching a version two of it. An anti snore pillow with Memory Foam. Besides the motion pillow app forever puts to bed the “I don’t snore” argument as the pillow tracks sleeping patterns through its app. Voila! Case closed.
Couples with dogs have another argument, the “who-lets-the-dog-out” argument. Wayzn, the smart dog door made by a Los Altos innovator plans to put that argument at rest. Designed to replace traditional doggie doors, the smart sliding glass door opener is the first product of its kind and was selected by USA Today’s Reviewed to receive a CES Editor’s Choice Award. It allows hands-free use of your sliding door. The smart slider fits most standard sliding glass door tracks. The app-controlled device, which integrates with smart cameras like Nest, sends a notification to your phone when motion is detected at the door, prompting you to open or close the door for your pooch remotely.
I have an English mastiff and would have loved to get Wayzn but the door, if 8ft tall, is not opened wide enough to let a 180 pound dog through. It would be great to provide my dog, Brown Sahib, controlled access to the yard when we are at home or away but he will have to lose some weight for that to happen.
Many devices including your shoes, and your watch can record the pitter-patter of your heart. These devices display electro cardiograms to tell you if your heart is skipping a beat at the sight of your loved one or you have a medical condition. My apple watch does that. But at CES I ran into Mezoo a small diamond shaped device that I stuck on my chest. It can detect 16 types of heart arrhythmia as well and tells you if your heartbeat is irregular, too fast, or too slow.
Finally to make that Valentines Day kiss sparkly and clean I saw two options at CES, the quick teeth cleaner and the detailed teeth cleaner.
The quick teeth cleaner was Y-Brush the 10-second cleaner. Instead of moving the small head of a regular toothbrush from tooth-to-tooth, the Y-Brush cleans half your mouth at a time.
Oral-B on the other hand shared the iO brush which will be made available in August 2020. The iO app gives detailed feedback on spots missed during routine brushing. It also has a built-in display to provide feedback throughout your brushing routine.
Like a kid in the candy store I wanted all the products I saw at CES but then I remembered Gaye, a girl who worked with me in London. She had returned from her visit to the US with a gift of an anti balding solution for her boyfriend, permanently ending that relationship.
Some gifts may be perceived as feedback by your loved one even though you only have their welfare and happiness in mind. While choosing a gift, like the devices, you too must be smart.
Ritu Marwah is a senior writer whose articles and awarding winning stories are awaited with great anticipation by her readers. She hopes her gifts receive the same appreciation. Somehow she doubts it.