So you like the idea of a wearable device that can alert you to incoming text messages, phone calls, or emails, but you’re not sold on a full-fledged smartwatch. Chronos is a tiny disc that you can slap on the back of any watch to add smart features.

It can track fitness stats and it can pair with a phone to alert you about incoming messages thanks to a vibration motor and an LED light.

Chronos is taking pre-orders for $99, with a limited number of early bird models going for $79. The full retail price will be $129.

chronos_01

The disc has a diameter of 33 millimeters and it measures 3mm thick. It should be able to fit on the back of most watches, although it will add a little bulk.

It has a stainless steel case, a water resistant design, an accelerometer for motion tracking, and Bluetooth 4.0 LE for pairing with a phone. The mobile app lets you set different tones or LED colors for different types of messages or for different contacts.

There’s not a lot of room under the hood for a gigantic battery, so you should only expect about 36 hours of run time between charges. But Chronos supports wireless charging, which should make charging the battery relatively painless.

If you’ve been avoiding a smartwatch because you don’t like the idea of having to charge you timepiece every day, Chronos might not help much. But if you just don’t like the look of existing models or don’t like the idea of spending a lot of money on a watch only to find that its features are obsolete in a few years, this sort of smart add-on for traditional watches might make sense.

via The Verge

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8 replies on “Chronos turns any watch smart(er) for $129 or less”

  1. No, I don’t like the idea of a wearable device alerting me or tracking anything, especially not my stupid fitness stats, I can feel my body without a detour over retarded and unnecessary electronics.

    Aside from that, my Watch has a GPS to set its time anywhere in the world and it will still keep ticking after 2 years of zero sunlight to charge it. All I want it to do is tell me time and date. Thanks, Citizen. Simple.
    0
    Take that, stupid electronic dog leashes, needing a charge after a few lousy days.
    What a waste of perfectly good materials.

  2. Now this is a nice item! Modular , but a bit expensive for what it is. If they can bring the price down it would be a great buy.

    1. you mean, if there was a point to yet increase EMF pollution to your body’s electro-chemical workings for something utterly pointless?

      Simply pulling your phone from your shirt pocket too strenuous?

  3. This makes a lot more sense to me, you can keep your favorite watch while dipping your toe into the smartwatch pool.

  4. I’m trying to think of other things you might attach it to just to give you the alerts. Maybe your computer monitor? Seems like there’d be other uses than just a watch.

    1. Yeah, go pay $129 to get yourself tracked by whoever cares to do so (which may be nobody, but one should have some principles)

      Then worry about charging it all the time, start wasting time on the phone and more money when the battery keels over. Constantly get interrupted by alerts you have never needed and you don’t need now. Like to be dominated by Facebook or whoever wants a piece of you? “ohh why didn’t you react to my alerts, you do have this fancy alert gizmo, no?”

      I can see the BYOD corporation-friendly version 3.0 – improved! Now with electroshock capability and of course, it locks securely to your wrist. With free NSA backdoor.
      Your “fitness stats not just monitored but remotely analyzed and monitored as needed by your superiors. Heart rate irregular while answering questions? “he’s hiding something…”

      1. Tracking is hardly an issue if you attach it to an immobile device like a computer monitor. 😉

        But I was thinking that would be less intrusive than having your desktop computer get alerts from your smartphone, as some apps/programs will do.

Comments are closed.