Navigation is a popular theme for wearable devices. Google Glass is great at taking you to the closest Starbucks, Navigate, a fashionable GPS-enabled coat, will help you find your way to the nearest nightspot, and this DIY Smart Cycling takes you to the nearest Citibike Sharing station.
SuperShoes, by Dhairya Dand, too have typical mapping and wayfinding functionality but with a clever twist. The flexible smart insoles connect to your mobile device to help navigate you to your destination but they also have the ability to learn more about the user — your to-do list, restaurant preferences, favorite hiking spots, etc. Coupling personal data with location-based technologies, of course, is nothing new but using your personal likes and habits as a means to help derail you from your everyday patterns is simply quite fun.
The novel feature of the SuperShoes is that it can instill “acts of random serendipity” — suggest a different route to work in the morning or suggest a scenic walk for mediation, adding a level of discovery and exploration to one of the best forms of exercise — walking.
