Intel’s New Luxury Smart Bracelet, MICA, Will Offer Texting and Alerts
The MICA bracelet. (Intel)
Brace yourselves: Your jewelry is about to get its own apps.
In a joint presentation on Monday, computing giant Intel and New York-based fashion retailer Opening Ceremony revealed the features and final form of their new bracelet, the MICA. Short for “My Intelligent Communication Accessory,” the bracelet will allow you to access text messages, Gmail, Yelp, GPS, and Google and Facebook events. The device, which features a curved sapphire touchscreen display, will be available in December for $495 at Opening Ceremony’s online and retail stores and at Barney’s.
(Alyssa Bereznak/Yahoo Tech)
Unlike other wristwatch computers, such as the Apple Watch and several devices running Google’s Android Wear, MICA does not have to be connected to a smartphone to operate. Instead, similar to Wil.i.am’s Puls smart cuff, it’ll be powered by its own two-year AT&T data contract, “paid for by Intel,” after which Intel Vice President Ayse Ildeniz says you and AT&T will have to “re-contract.” (Asked what that means, she admitted that the company hadn’t worked out what exactly that would do to the wallets of MICA owners.)
The bangle, which was first announced during Fashion Week this past September, is made in two colors: black and white. Both have an 18-carat gold coating. One comes with black water snake skin, Chinese pearls, and lapis stones from Madagascar. The other is made from white water snake skin, tiger’s eye from South Africa, and obsidian from Russia. When I tried one on during a quick hands-on demo, it was light on the wrist, fit well, and was comfortable to wear.
The MICA bracelet in black. (Alyssa Bereznak/Yahoo Tech)
Rather than carry a display at the top of the bracelet, MICA is designed for women to glance at and swipe notifications from the insides of their wrists. These include something Intel calls “Time to Go” alerts, which combine GPS and your calendar events to estimate time it’ll take for you to travel from one place to another. Other notifications include text messages and email alerts from handpicked “VIPs,” to ensure that your wrist isn’t constantly buzzing. Each function takes about two or three taps to enable.
“I get to decide who has the phone number here,” Ildeniz said. “I get to decide who are my VIPs: It’s the close contact with my family and my loved ones.”
You can control the information that filters into the bracelet via an online portal, accessible via computer or smartphone. There you can change the background patterns of the device’s display screen, load up your Gmail accounts, connect your Google and Facebook calendars, and log in to your Yelp account.
Though MICA does not connect or sync to your phone, it can be charged by your computer via a USB cord, and its battery life lasts up to two days, depending on the frequency of use. According to Humberto Leon, creative director and co-founder of Opening Ceremony, the two groups are collaborating on a bowl that charges the device as well.
(Alyssa Bereznak/Yahoo Tech)
The event, moderated by Lucky Magazine Editor-in-Chief Eva Chen, included a video advertisement featuring actress Rashida Jones and representatives from Intel, Opening Ceremony, and Barneys New York.
“Wearables and technology is still in its infancy,” Ildeniz said. “This is just one example of how we can actually expand the usage of wearables. It’s going to be a much wider phenomenon when we come out with different devices that cater to different types of people. Today we’re talking about a woman who wants to stay in touch with her loved ones. Tomorrow we could be talking about children. As Intel, this is our premise.”
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