So, you may have missed this – probably not, given it has taken the web by storm – but a company called HAPILABS has introduced the world to HAPIfork, the world’s first “smart fork” that promises to help you lose weight by improving the way you eat.
The fork has technology that will know how fast you are eating, and will give you gentle vibrations that don’t disrupt your meal or conversation – notifying you to slow down to slow you down to eat at an “optimal” pace. It will count the number of fork servings during a meal, and will record the exact times you start and end the meal, the amount of servings per minute and the duration of the meal. This data is then sent to your online account via USB to your computer, or Bluetooth to your smartphone.
According to HAPILABS, it will also reduce digestive problems by slowing down your eating pace, and decrease gastric reflux. Included with the fork is the online coaching program and social game, both to motivate you and to provide tips on how to eat smarter and healthier.
It starts at US$99 in blue, green, black, white and pink; and will start shipping in Q2 2013 for Kickstarter backers with the USB connection model. The Bluetooth model will start shipping to the US and France in Q3, before other countries in 2014.