Last week, Synced by District sent over the Embr Wave for an exclusive preview. I did an unboxing, tried it for a couple of days, before sending it back to their Plaza Singapura retail outlet in time for their official launch in Singapore.
Your Personal Thermostat
What this nifty wearable does is to change the way you perceive temperature, by applying heat or cold on the device which you wear on your wrist.
Science shows that cooling or warming one spot on your body can improve your overall comfort without changing your core temperature. It changes your perception of temperature so that in cold places like office, you do not feel as chilly, or during stressed up situations when one tends to feel hot, it might cool you down.
Control over Smartphone
During the setup process on the smartphone app, it will capture your profile so that it can monitor your usage over time, learn from your usage, and improve the experience. The UI design looks good and achieves a rather calming view. The app lets you update firmware, set programs and timer on the usage cycles, indicates the battery life, as well as your usage summary in days, weeks and months, much like a fitness tracker.
You can also change the temperature directly from the bracelet. I find that I am more sensitive to the “cold”: at -1 degree, I can already feel the bite on my skin, whereas for the “heat” mode, I need to turn up several degrees before I feel the heat.
During the 3-day review period, I only need to charge the Embr Wave once. There is no remaining battery time, and it depends on how frequent you use the Embr Wave. It is charged using micro-USB cable.
My Experience
After wearing it for 3 days, I don’t really feel I get the benefit of the Embr Wave. And because the best outcome requires the bracelet to be touching the inner wrist instead of outer, it tends to get in the way when using the computer or resting the arms on the table.
I shared my feedback to the folks at Synced and they told me who the product’s target audience is: primary customer group is women 45-65 years old going through menopause – aka prime-time women. Embr Wave helps them manage hot flashes, sleep problems, thermal discomfort, and anxiety.
Secondary audiences are people who suffer from:
- Cancer treatment side-effects
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Raynauds’ syndrome
- Anxiety
- Sleep Disorders
- Extreme stress
- Cold intolerance
I guess I am not their target audience.
Verdict
While Embr Wave doesn’t work for me, I was rather fascinated with the gadget. I don’t think it’s a dud, and I think it should work for people who has a condition related to how their body feels about the temperature. The Embr Wave retails in Singapore at S$449. You can visit the physical store at Plaza Singapore #03-65 (NomadX) to experience it.