How Wearable Technology is Transforming the Way of Personal Safety (Security)

Isn’t it quite embarrassing when we are in any critical situation or any mishappening occurs we cannot actually communicate with our family and friends. Mobile has changed the way we communicate with each other in a smarter way but is not quite effective when we are in any critical situation as its operation is easily noticeable by other person. Companies are targeting wearable devices to help you connect to your known contacts easily and quickly in any life-threatening situation.



The most fascinating thing about wearable device is that it can be utilized in dual purpose. Firstly it can fulfil your first objective like you can wear it as a jewellery item like ring, watch, or in the form of other wearables and secondly it can be used as device to perform a specific task.



Although many mobile apps have already been developed which help people notify friends and family during emergencies but companies are trying to connect mobile app to wearable devices to make it even easier for them to call for the help.



For example, from a recent news source, React Mobile a Seattle-based company has launched React Sidekick, a low energy Bluetooth device that pairs with free React mobile apps and lets users send a widespread emergency email or text message just by pressing a button.



This will not only send but also post a message to your Facebook and Twitter accounts that you’re in a dangerous situation and share your location with them.

The purpose of creating this device is to simplify the mode of communication via sending alerts and hence eliminate the need to find and unlock your phone to call for help. In case of emergency, simply click the Sidekick Button to send out a widespread panic alert to a group of your trusted contacts.



There are many companies that are working on various solutions to simplify the technique of sending alert messaging in any critical situation. This device can be helpful to consumers in many ways.



In Battle Field



This solution will be very useful for armed force men. They can use this device to send alert messages whenever they are in any war like situation. Sometimes it happens that army men, in battle field, are not able to communicate and share their exact location to their contacts. In that case army men who get caught in any life threatening situation can easily send message alerts and share their exact location with their main control source.



In Travelling



Sometimes it happens that we travel alone and suddenly we met with an accident on the way where we somehow cannot manage to use hands to operate our phone. In that situation this device can be of great help to the users as by just simple use of press button you can inform your family and friends that he/she is in a critical situation.



Better Parenting



Sometimes parents leave their child alone at home. In this situation this device can help them monitor their child from anywhere anytime.



Women’s Safety



In many developing countries, women’s security is the major concern. Traveling alone is not safe for them. Such device can be helpful to them. In dangerous situation they can use such device to send alerts to their loved ones.
These are the few areas where such solution can be of great help to consumers but from personal safety point of view it is helpful for everyone and we believe that wearable device will play a major role in this area.



Do you really thing that wearable tech is the future of personal safety? Please share your view in comment section.



(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has extensive experience and expertise in app development for wearable devices like Google Glass. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.)

Top 5 Reasons Why Wearable Tech Could Be as Big as The Mobile

 

The future of anything depends on how it will influence our life. History shows that computer and information technology were big trends, but mobile technology is even bigger because mobile has a greater impact on how we communicate and receive information. Now, wearable technology is going one step ahead of mobile technology. It is completely changing the communication trends. By looking at the way wearable technology is changing the process of communication, it is safe to assume that wearable technology will be as big as mobile. The top 5 reasons behind this assumption are:



1. End to End Communication



The main objective of wearable devices is to simplify communication. Most of the wearable devices are hands free and voice enabled. Like a few voice enabled features of mobile phones; users can communicate through voice command in wearable gadgets without touching the device. It is very difficult to say whether wearable devices will replace smartphones, but in most cases wearables will win over mobiles. Wearable devices provide more flexibility in communication than mobile devices.



2. Machine to Machine Communication



The beauty of wearable technology is its capability of device to device (machine to machine) communication. Wearable devices are not being used only for user communication, but also for machine to machine communication. Many companies are working on wearables which can be used to control other systems. It can communicate with systems like cars, mobiles, etc. through

applications. For example, Tesla command app will enable controlling luxury electric cars with an Android Wear smartwatch. Similarly, in the near future, many wearable device based apps will be developed to enable communication with other systems. For example, communication between home appliances and wearable devices.



3. Business Oriented



Wearable devices are not just for wearing. It is a concept to bring technology on wearables to revolutionize industries. Tech companies are targeting wearables to change the way we do the things. Many industries are using wearables to do things in a better manner. For example, retail industry, consumers and business are using Google Glass for a better shopping experience. Other industries like healthcare, education, real estate are using Google Glass for various purposes to make things easier for users.



4. Easy Way to Search and Share Information



The most attractive part of wearable devices is its way of showing information. Like mobile phones, wearables do not need buttons to receive a call or search information. These are developed for hand free operations and work on voice commands. They not only provide information, but also display

the information in front of your eyes like computers. For example, through Google Glass you can perform things like making calls, recording videos, sending messages and more just by saying “Ok Glass” followed by the action item.



This capability of wearable is beneficial not only for consumers but also for businesses.



5. Easier and Flexible to Adopt



The most fascinating thing about wearable devices is its ease of use. We are already habituated to devices like watches, glasses, clothes, etc. These devices do not need to be carried separately or to be picked up and put down like mobile phones or laptops while performing tasks. In wearable

technology, the gadgets allow the tasks to be performed through voice command. This hands free capability of wearable devices will make it more adaptable than other devices like mobiles in the near future.



(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has extensive experience and expertise in app development for wearable devices like Google Glass. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.)

Google Glass is Not an Ordinary Glass, It’s a Business Solution

Google glass, when introduced was more geeky. It was launched for complete tech-whiz work but now when it has turned 2 years old, the usage is not just getting diverted towards the commercial level but it’s becoming an ultimate business solution too.



Although Google glasses are still not within the reach for the commercial use or for consumer level. But that time is not far away when one can find people communicating with their smartphones with a Google glass, whether it’s about storing movies, books or any notification which can be seen with the use of Google glass but also it will correct our eye vision if needed. In fact, developers are working on these geeky looking glasses to make it more compact but they are also working towards the invention of the contact lenses which can give the complete feeling of any sci-fi movies in the matter of time.



However, a question arises; how it’s a complete business solution and in what industries Google glass has been used or is going to be used. If we look at the current situation, Google glasses and business doesn’t seems to go hand-in-hand. Businesses which are into bar, casinos, movie theatres, or any other business where these glasses can breach their privacy policy will not welcome Google glass and will ban them.



However there are many industries, where they are eager to use this technology or already using it or it’s under the testing phase or something. In today’s post, we will discuss about these industries and where it can be used to take out the maximum benefits and usage. You probably don’t know there are dozens of businesses that have already started using Google Glass. Whether it’s a big or small businesses, Google glasses are definitely making its impact over these industries.



Below are industries where it’s been used –



Education and Training



With the Google glasses reading would be really fun, no turning pages or carrying books. A Google glass can store ample number of books. Plus with current live video streaming or may be stored videos, a student can learn a lot. In fact it can be used in industries where you need focused training or learning, Google glasses may help employers to use it to learn precision and meticulousness.



Marketing and Tech



Technologies like Gamification or technology where you require augmented reality or Virtual reality. Here, Google glasses shows its best usage. Other than these, Google Glass could be part of the “connected home” technology and can serve as both remote control and interactive video screen for watching TV.



Retail



In retail, it will definitely give the new horizon to the ecommerce and online shopping. It will definitely bridge the gap between the physical store and online store also boost the customer trust and confidence while going for online shopping.



Health and Medicine



Experts have claimed that Google glasses would definitely make an impact when it comes in the medical industry. Whether it’s about accessing the information of a patient by just scanning the QR code and to find out the medical history in just snap of time to also help the patients to stream some videos like facilities given to new mothers to how to breastfeed their newborn or any other offered needs.



Media, Journalism and Entertainment



This industry is also booming, e.g. sportscaster John Kucko used Google glass while covering this year’s Super Bowl. When it comes to media and journalism, it will definitely help in covering reports and also helps in broadcasting etc. Again in entertainment from making a video to broadcasting those videos to the viewers can be done with a help of Google glass.



Travel and Tourism



Imagine you are going through an international flight where instead of checking your details, boarding pass or any other information manually or using a computer the agents are maintaining the eye contact with you, greeting you and eventually accessing and checking your flight information. It not just saves your time but it definitely sounds cool, isn’t it? Therefore in travel and tourism, the Google glasses will make a promising effect which will help in improving the customer relation and satisfaction.



Other than the above industries, there are more industries like sports, automobile, real estate, banking and finance etc. where Google glass can be used as a business solution. So, at the end we can say Google glasses are definitely making a huge impact on many businesses and you never know what developers come up with next to woo us!



(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has extensive experience and expertise in app development for smart gadgets like Google Glass. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.)

What is Gamification & How It Will Help Organization to Improve Productivity

Where the whole industry is getting gaga over Gamification and its applications. There are people who are making a mistake by considering gamification as a game. It’s not a usual game, but an application which resolves the problem of productivity and effectiveness.
According to Gartner report, they predict that by the end of 2014, over 70% of Global 2000 organizations will have at least one 'gamified' application. And during 2012 only about 20% of Global 2000 companies have deployed a gamified application. So, the question arise why all the sudden multinational companies and organizations are so eager to gamify?



To understand that, first let’s understand what Gamification is



Who doesn’t like to play games? And what if you can merge the production and efficiency of your organization with the gaming. Sounds interesting, isn’t it! So if we want to define it in some technical jargons then according to Forrester, Gamification is the insertion of game dynamics and mechanics into non-game activities to drive a desired behavior. Although gamification, as the name suggests, was evolved out of the world of video games, where they have mastered the art of data-driven motivation.



However, when these game applications are implied over organizations for better productivity and to make the organizations task seamless, it shows it actual strength. In other words any use of gaming elements which are used for organizing systems with a pre-defined rules to play, leaderboards, and other methods for awarding rewards, when all this are applied in non-game contexts that is considered to be gamification.



Now the next important question, why you need Gamification?



The current workforce was born with the videogames. This is a generation who grew up playing interactive games, it is a generation which is known as Millennials. According to research from Nielsen, 68% of Millennials own a gaming console, 76% own smartphones and 73% own a laptop, so it's a generation which is comfortable with games, interactivity and technology.



So the need for gamification is simple, it helps in striving the desired goals e.g. achieving the targets for sales and deals. Gamification motivates the employee to achieve the target in the best possible manner. According to Aberdeen Group, Gamifcation authenticates how top-performing organizations take a ‘thoughtful or simple’ path to manage their sales teams, who then respond positively with better revenue, quota, and profitability results.



If we talk about its principles, it got 4 principles which means of driving engagement using gamification techniques –



• Accelerated Feedback Cycles: Gamification increases the speed of feedback loops to maintain the engagement.



• Clear Goals and Rules to Play: Gamification provides clear goal and its well defined rules to play it. And it also ensures that players feel empowered to achieve these goals.



• A compelling Story: Gamification builds a story that engages players to participate and achieve the goals of the activity.



• Tasks are need to be challenging but achievable at the same time: Goals should be well defined. The curriculum should provide many short terms, achievable goals to maintain engagement.

Below are the Top 5 gamification apps that you can try your hands on –



• Epicwin ($2.99) – It mainly focuses on task management by bestowing you with an RPG character to represent your progress.



• GetGlue (Free) – It shares what you’re currently reading, watching and listening to with GetGlue’s social network, and get rewarded with free stickers and discounts.



• Mint.com Personal Finance (Free) – It is mainly used for financial accounts in progress bars and checklists, the app’s function is to combine all your financial information into one place to help you track, budget and manage your money.



• DueProps (Free) – It’s an employee-appreciation game designed to recognize everyday work efforts, DueProps deploys gamification to incentivize and reward co-workers. Its helps in increasing productivity and raise morale around the office.



• WiseStep (Free) – It is a social network that lets you earn points and rewards for referring your friends to new jobs. Members earn points for inviting friends, colleagues and classmates to the website, and referral rewards etc.



At the end, it can be concluded that every company has its own demands and mission. It is important to understand the need first of all and how it can be benefited. Running blindly is not a solution. So, if you are an organization looking for gamification app as an alternate solution which can resolve the purpose of company, surely you should go for it otherwise it would be like making fool of yourself in this competitive world.



(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has extensive experience and expertise in custom application development for various industries. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.)

The Revolution of Industries Through 3D Printing

The 3D printing industry has been around since 1980’s but only recently, people are getting hang of this industry. More and more enterprises from different verticals are understanding the importance of this technology and giving its due space.



Space companies are printing aerospace parts, medical industry is printing the complicated human organs to get better understanding of the field and so on. Because industries are picking more and more on 3d printing this industry is set to grow by $3 million by 2018. It will be a remarkable growth of 76% in comparison to 2013.



However, one has to understand that this technology is not meant for all the industries. It is meant for the industries which are dealing into a B2B sector and have limited number of clients to present/sent these 3d prints too. The approx. cost of a print comes to around $160/print which is huge if compared to the normal printing.



The industries which will be hugely revolutionized by this printing are-



Defense industry



Time and mechanism is very crucial part of defense industry. 3d printing give the freedom to manufactures to create quick practical designs of the proposed machinery in order to give exact demo to the defense professionals. This printing is also helpful in creating the mock-ups as well as functional designs of the actual site to create better heads-up meeting to the soldier.



“Our Objet printer helped cut the development cycle for this new product line by approximately 25 to 40 percent, and the cost of development was reduced by two thirds.”- Bob Peterson, Senior Mechanical Engineer.



Medical industry



Time is again a very crucial factor in medical industry. With the help of 3d industry the time to market for the new innovative lifesaving devices has been reduced considerably because now the doctors as well as manufactures can come on the same page before the equipment goes into the production with the help of practical models made from Bio-compatible Materials. This industry will also revolutionize the training of the medical students because now the students can also get tanning on the 3D models.



Architecture industry



The client will have more clarity of the design. The architecture firm will also be create more complex designs which can be used to pitch for the new clients as well as be used in the in-house library. These designs will be re-useable as well as editable for the future production of the firm. The firm will save time in creating the practical model and the clients will have more visualization of the final product they are hoping to get. It will be a win-win situation for both the parties.



These are just some of the industries which are taking benefits from 3D printing. We are sure that more and more industries will get into this technology and explore the world of end-less limit.



(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has extensive experience and expertise in application development for various industries. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.)



Image credited: thesundaytimes.co.uk

Sony Targeting Wearable Devices to Make Payment Easier and Smoother

“An innovative step of Sony in wearable payment technology to make payment easier and smoother from the wearable devices”



Wearable devices are no longer only wearables. Tech companies are looking at wearable devices as a revolutionary product. Companies are targeting wearables to make things more tech savvy.



Soon, we will be able to make payments through watches or any other wearable devices. Sony is working on a technology, known as FeliCa smartcard chip, which will be used in smart watches and other wearables. This wearable technology being used by Sony will allow smart watches and other devices of this nature to be capable of contactless mobile payments.



This is not the first time when Sony is implementing such technology. FeliCa Networks, a subsidiary of Sony, has already implemented this technology on mobile devices and has achieved widespread use throughout Japan in e-payment and public transit fares.



Sony just wants to bring this technology to wearable devices. For this, FeliCa Network is modifying its FeliCa contactless card technology for wearables. The new design will involve a low-power chip that can be fitted into smart watches, smart bands and other types of small connected gadgets that are designed to be worn on the body.



No doubt, wearables are the future and most top technology companies are aware of this fact. Currently however, consumers are not very aware of wearables; but it is believed that there is a large and growing segment of consumers who are interested in products such as smart watches and smart bands.



The idea behind bringing this technology to wearable devices is to make payment easier and eliminate carrying unnecessary cards and passes. Generally people use cards and passes when travelling by trains or buses. Sometimes it is critical for people to recall whether the card has a balance that can be used while making a payment, leading to time consumption. This technology will enable wearers to make payments by just waving the gadget over a reader and get information on the current balance and history.



This is not only beneficial from a consumers point of view, but also from a business point of view. On the one hand, it saves consumer’s time and provides easier options to make payment, while on the other, it is beneficial for businesses. It has been seen that whenever payment methods are simplified, users start spending more money to purchase different things.

Sony is not the only company which is working on wearable payment technology; there are many others who are working to bring payments on wearable devices. PayPal is already testing a Smartwatch payment system to enable wireless payment with smartwatch.



Wearable is a big emerging trend and affecting all verticals of businesses. The banking industry is also being affected by this trend and has to align its business in order to gain competitive advantage.



(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has extensive experience and expertise in app development for smart gadgets like Google Glass. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.)