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Creative and Razer are not the only players doing the country proud with their innovative hardware
Many years ago the poofy-haired and neon-lit Singapore of the 1980’s, the tech hardware space was an unvarnished land. One enterprising individual, however, saw opportunity and stepped up to plant his stake in the ground – Sim Wong Hoo.
His company Creative Technology developed the world-renowned Sound Blaster cards, which set the standard of PC audio in the 1990s, turning Sim into a billionaire. Fast forward three decades later, the tech hardware landscape in Singapore has grown far beyond Creative’s wildest imagination.
Many homebrew entrepreneurs – and pilgrims returning from Silicon Valley – have dived into this sector. These include the gaming hardware giant Razer, which has racked in three digit million dollar figures, and employs about 500 employees globally.
Apart from Creative and Razer, there are many smaller scale Singapore-based startups doing their bit to push out innovative tech products.
So without further adieu, here are 10 exemplifying specimens.
1. KLÜG
In our humid and blistering hot climate, aircons are a must-have. KLUG is stepping in to help make them more eco-friendly.
The KLÜG Home, developed by Intraix (with backing from A*STAR), is an IoT device designed for the home or office. It is used to optimise aircon usage and reduce consumption.
Aircon consumption is monitored by attaching the palm-sized KLÜG Air devices on one or several aircons, then syncing them to the KLÜG Home hub. Users can then view the statistics through a smartphone app. KLÜG Air is able to connect to most aircon controllers so that it can optimise room temperature.
In addition, users can control the device with their voice through Amazon Echo and Apple Home Kit.
Intraix is currently in partnership with IDA to test these devices in selected homes.
2. QLIPP
Tennis aficionados, and all you Serena Williams wannabes, the QLIPP device will give an edge over the opponent by analysing a user’s tennis strokes and suggesting improvements.
The device attaches to the strings of a tennis racket and syncs with a smartphone app to measure tennis playing skill and performance.
QLIPP was incubated in NTUitive, the enterprise and innovation arm of NTU. Its Indiegogo campaign has garnered over US$97,000 so far.
Recently, it signed a partnership deal with Registro Profesional de Tennis (RPT) — a leading global tennis coach association with over 20,000 coaches – to provide these devices.
3. uHoo
Like many tech products, uHoo was created to tackle personal pain points. Dustin Jefferson S. Onghanseng, Co-founder and CEO of uHoo suffers from hay fever (rhinitis) , while the Co-founder and Brian Lin is asthmatic.
uHoo connects to a WiFi network using the uHoo smartphone app. The device then automatically detects the air quality using its eight sensors – detecting temperature, humidity, PM 2.5, air pressure, carbon monoxide, ozone, airborne chemicals and carbon dioxide – and sends the information to the app.
Once the air quality hits unhealthy levels (so watch out, smokers), the app sends out notifications and alerts, along with tips and tricks on how to improve the environment. uHoo’s small size also allows it to easily be carried abroad on trips.
4. ZaiBike
Created by nine students at Singapore University of Design and Technology, ZaiBike aims to tackle Singapore’s lack of bicycle-friendly facilities.
Building on the trend of the sharing economy, ZaiBike’s smart public bicycles have features such as a smart locking and theft-proofing system and a GPS.
The bicycles are parked at low cost and space-efficient bicycle racks, allowing greater accessibility and reducing costs for users.
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ZaiBike received a US$13,900 research grant from the SUTD-MIT International Design Centre. It also crowdfunded US$2,747 from Indiegogo.
5. Qube
Created by Innova technology, backed by Red Dot Ventures for over US$400,000, Qube is a Wi-Fi-enabled LED smart bulb that displays 16 million different hues, has a brightness of 60W, and claims to be able last for up to 50,000
hours, or 27 years.
The smart bulb connects to a router and syncs with your Android or Apple smartphone to automatically switch on or off the lights by sensing your location.
It can also connects with a weather app and an alarm clock, changing colours to remind people to bring out the umbrella when it rains, or when it’s time to get out of bed. In addition, the colours change when you receive a call or message.
Qube has raised over US$460,000 on its Indiegogo campaign.
6. Aspirus
Some medical reports have suggested that sitting down for too many hours may be bad to your health – that is bad news for many office workers. Luckily, Aspirus has the answer.
The Aspirus is a smart standing workstation. It detects whether a user is seated or standing using a IR sensor and another undisclosed sensor.
It has a one-touch elevation system reminder system that would prompt users to transition between sitting and standing .
On its Indiegogo campaign, it has bagged over US$60,000 in funds.
7. Juvo
Tracking the quality of sleep is tricky. Many have resorted to using wearables but those might be uncomfortable when trying to get a good night’s rest.
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Juvo tackles this by coming in a form of a neat sensor mat that can be slipped under a mattress. It tracks movement, heart rate, temperature, sound levels, breathing, and light to suggest optimal sleep conditions.
By connecting with the supported smart devices Juvo can automatically adjust the bedroom lighting, turn off the TV, and adjust the thermostat to enable the optimal sleep condtions.
Juvo has raised US$53,800 on Indiegogo.
8. Neeuro
Struggling with those maths problems or feeling cobwebs gathering in your problem solving faculties? Neeuro may be able to help.
Neeuro is a brain training startup whose flagship product Neeuro SenzeBand is a high-tech wearable worn like a band.
It detects brainwaves using six sensors, four front EEG sensors and two reference sensors. They read and map cognitive activity based upon an in-house algorithm.
The objective of this band is to help users achieve a healthier mind via brain training/mind stimulation. Its companion platform Neeuro Memorie features15 games designed to improve memory, attention span, spatial-skills and various other cognitive functions.
It has crowdfunded over US$80,000 on Indiegogo.
9. CreoPop
CreoPop is a 3D pen with cool ink. In contrast to other 3D pens, there are no hot parts, melting plastic or unpleasant smells. CreoPop uses photopolymers that are solidified using LED diodes to let users create funky 3D designs. It is also cordless.
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Since no heating is required, CreoPop is safe in a home environment with children and pets around. The most innovative feature of CreoPop is the large selection of cool inks available including different colours, elastic ink, magnetic ink, glow-in-the-dark ink, temperature sensitive ink and body paint ink (henna designs anyone?).
It has raised over US$200,000 on Indiegogo.
10. EverComm
Founded by Ted Chen, a Forbes 30 under 30 award recipient, EverComm’s enterprise product is a device that collects and validates the energy usage data from various sensor sources. It then analyses the energy usage and output data (across system-level) to recommend the most efficient equipment setting for the manufacturer.
EverComm claims its device can save manufacturer’s total energy consumption anywhere between 1 to 10 per cent; its clients have collectively accumulated over US$3.4 million in energy savings.
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Disclosure: This article was produced by the e27 content marketing team and presented by Smart Nation Innovations 2016 where Tech Meets Innovation.
More details on www.sni2016.com
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