As we all know, our bodies are high fashion real estate. What we put on is a direct reflection of ourselves, and there are always rules of both comfort and function, not to mention personal taste. 2014 was an onslaught of tech companies attempting to throw things against the wall just to see what would stick. The year left me highly disappointed without seeing any wearable tech that I’d comfortably wear on a daily basis and find as useful as my faithful collection of Nooka watches.
As a statement of irony I have started making a line of faux fashion-tech that looks about as fashionable as all of the activity trackers and wearables out there, but comes with a delicate chain and feature set that is limited to pressing a button and watching a light blink on and off. I think it has great last-minute gift potential.
However, despite what may come across as harsh cynicism, there are 5 upcoming trends that I cannot wait to see more of in 2015, and this time hopefully met with a little more taste:
#5 – Virtual Reality Headsets: These, unfortunately, have little hope of becoming fashionable or even comfortable in the near future, however offer juicy promises of virtual shopping experiences that may be better than any in-store shopping trip you’ve ever been on.
#4 – Tiny, Wearable Cameras From Google Glass, to the Autographer, these small cameras are great hands-free options, but start to pose some controversy around voyeuristic opportunities.
#3 – Mindfulness Ringly & Kovert Designs offer fashionable Bluetooth notifications in the form of quasi-stylish rings, but if we’ve learned anything from Bluetooth, it’s that constantly receiving notifications without the ability to view or respond gets extremely frustrating. There are more opportunities around wearable tech for the mind, such as Muse. Muse tracks peaceful and stressful states of mind with an accompanying app to encourage successful meditation.
#2 – Smaller, Wearable Phones Have you ever seen the movie Zoolander? Apparently Samsung, Apple, and will.i.am have forgotten the joke around smaller screens and are pushing bracelet and watch-like devices to both accompany and replace your phone. Careful before jumping on the bandwagon, as Public Enemy so famously put it, “don’t believe the hype”. These phones are joining the lineup of familiar gadgetry that will be fun to play with, but without any unique functionality will likely wind up in the back of that junk drawer. [*If you’re interested in the Apple Watch check out “Apple Watch Price – How Much Will It Cost?“]
#1 – Safety This was my favorite trend to see pop up last year. Zackees wearable turn-signal gloves promote night-time safety for runners and cyclists, while Cuff offers an emergency alert in the form of a single, stylish press.
Will 2015 reveal the future of fashion-tech or will it be another string of reactions to past, failed innovation? Keep an eye open for more fun with LEDs, gloves, and 3D printed styles gracing the runway this year. I’m feeling optimistic!
-XO Julia
HAPPY SHOPPING!
[*What exactly is Fashion and tech? Read about it here. If you want to learn more about wearable tech, check out “Man and Machine – The Wearable Tech Boom“. ]
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