15 Nov 2013
By Belle
Belle

Quantified Self weekly links: Everyone's hopping on board... except the mainstream

Exciting news for Exist this week: we're in Fast Company!

Now onto this week's links:

1. Thoughts on the Nike+ Move iPhone app

Cody Fink from MacStories published his thoughts on Nike's new iPhone app that connects to the M7 coprocessor in some new Apple products.

Image credit: MacStories

Ultimately, the Nike+ Move app on the iPhone 5s, provided you have one, makes me question wether you need a separate wearable device... Apple’s M7 coprocessor is baked into a device you already have with you. It knows when you’re driving, and it knows when you’re walking vs. running[4]. Being in a phone, it’s also not locked to your body, and it doesn’t (hopefully) end up in the wash. Combined with NikeFuel, you end up with a surprisingly honest fitness device.

Sound like it could be a worthy alternative to the Nike+ Fuelband, even:

Nike+ Move provides a very similar experience to the Nike+ FuelBand App, lacking only a few features such as move reminders, session recordings (useful for tracking specific workout activity), and sharing successes with the Nike+ community. I’m impressed that the Nike+ Move app offers so much.

2. Quantified Self experts answer the question, "What will be the impact of the quantified self over the next decade?"

I really liked what Anne Wojcicki, CEO of 23andme, had to say:

We don't have enough data about how lifestyle decisions impact our health. The QS movement will generate a massive amount of data about how we live. The aggregate of this will help us understand the impact of various behaviours such as diet -- and that will allow us to know the optimal lifestyle for each of us to live longer, healthier lives.

3. Movimento, a gamified Quantified Self app

The whole idea behind Movimento is simple – you connect your Nike+ FuelBand, Fitbit or any other supported wearable device with the mobile app. From there, you can create different challenges, invite your friends and directly compete with them. You earn points and badges throughout the process and build up your profile – think of it as an automated Fitocracy.

This is a neat way to compare and compete with your friends, regardless of what devices you all use.

4. Wearable tech is just an expensive joke

Ouch. There are certainly some vocal opponents to the Quantified Self movement, but this argument is a particularly interesting one:

People now raise their children to think that winning is not important; participation is everything. There is no real sense of accomplishment in school any more either. Nobody is smarter than anyone else since it may hurt someone's feelings to suggest such a thing.

So this is the new competition. My cholesterol is better than yours! My systolic blood pressure is better than yours! Oh, look at my heartbeat. I win!

5. The wearable dilemma

This is an interesting piece on getting Quantified Self to go mainstream.

Not only does the device need to look amazing, but it also has to provide a function that we can't live without. If you think about a diabetes tracker, that wearable serves a vital purpose for a niche of consumers.

Critical-use scenarios for users change over time: It's the reason we upgrade our laptops and smartphones every year or so. With wearables, the devices need to be smart enough to adapt to our lifestyle in order to continually provide useful data about daily habits that are sure to change week to week and month to month.

6. Tikker, the watch to help you count down your life

Tikker is a watch that not only tells you the time now, but also an estimate of how long you have left to live.

Wearing a Tikker is a statement to the world that your biggest priority in life, is living.

7. Eracle - a Quantified Self dashboard

Eracle is a snazzy-looking dashboard for your life, which looks to be a potential competitor to Exist.

Eracle connects all your health activity tracking data in one consolidated profile. Use Eracle to track, review and compare personal goals and improvements with ease. Share your profile to push yourself and your friends towards a healthier lifestyle. Track which music and places inspire you the most.

The Kickstarter only has a week left, so jump on board now if you want to see this project reach its goal.

More:

Subscribe Keep up to date with the Exist blog. Delivered to your inbox.