Wearables

Children’s Smartwatch Crowdfunds Nearly $1 Million

• By Sri Ravipati
• 01/05/17

An up-and-coming smartwatch for children has raised nearly $1 million on Indiegogo, an international crowdfunding website.

The Octopus watch from JOY is billed as “a training wheel for good habits,” according to its crowdfunding page. Octopus is designed to teach children aged 3-8 good habits and the concept of time.

“Studies have shown that children under 8 years old don’t understand the concept of time, let alone remember what to do when a certain time rolls around,” explained Sam Hickmann, a co-founder of JOY. “We have designed the first watch that helps them understand how parents expect them to use their time. We believe this will help children form good habits and help them to take responsibility for their actions.”

The watch offers three modes that aim to teach kids to tell time. The first mode displays large icons to help children associate various times of the day with specific tasks (i.e., a dog icon will appear to remind them to feed their pet). The second and third modes feature a digital and analog clock respectively.

It is also designed to act as a scheduler and assistant for parents, who can program visual reminders to pop up on the watch via the Octopus mobile app. Additionally, there is an optional gamification feature built into the system that, when turned on, enables children to unlock virtual rewards for completing tasks. For example, finishing homework one night can unlock a reward for ice cream on the weekend.

As for specs, the watch is made of water-resistant material and comes in swappable watchbands. It syncs up to smartphones in real-time via Bluetooth and can be controlled through the app. All progress is stored physically on its memory and radio frequencies are emitted, according to JOY. Lastly, the charging station — which takes the shape of an octopus — doubles as a nightlight.

On the campaign page, Hickmann said that JOY created the wearable device “to reinvent how parents share time with their children: no more stress, no more power struggles, only precious moments spent focusing on what really matters: quality family moments.”

JOY will showcase Octopus at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), taking place in Las Vegas this week.

To learn more about the device’s design, functions and prices, visit the Indiegogo page here or watch the video below.