At One Spark earlier this year, we had a chance to check out a bunch of interesting projects. Much like crowdfunding projects as a whole, most were pretty cool, but unpractical. However, there were a few projects that really stood out. One of these was Bcon. Here is what we wrote about the Bcon back in April:
Bcon, a new smartphone app and companion device that operates at a moments notice. The app is set up to summon your list of important contacts, with pre-written informational messages and your exact GPS coordinates. The companion bcon button is used as a trigger device or panic button, much the same way that the First Alert was designed. bconbutton. But rather than routing the distress signal through a piece of hardware, a slow phone line and a call center, the bcon device activates the app from as far as 50 feet away and then those that can help you for whatever reason, are immediately notified.
Bcon is back in the news this week. The company has spun off and perfected the companion device, and now they are taking to Kickstarter to get the project funded. Here is the Gyzmo:
Just to clarify, Bcon is the app described in the passage above. The Gyzmo, on the other hand, is a companion device to Bcon. The Gyzmo allows users to launch and send alerts through Bcon – or activate any app for that matter – from up to 50 feet away from your device:
Gyzmo is a wireless button that syncs with your smart devices using BLE technology. Once Gyzmo is synced you will have the ability to launch your favorite applications and features from across the room with the press of a button.1
The possibilities are almost endless. Although the Gyzmo was originally designed to be a remote panic button, it can be used for just about anything:
It has an open API allowing developers and companies to utilize gyzmo’s distance interaction for countless purposes. For example, it can be used to launch the camera for the perfect shot, change music remotely and even help locate the phone or a user’s keys.2
You can pre-order a Gyzmo for $59 over on the Kickstarter Campaign. Here is a good look at the functionality of the Gyzmo:
