LG Unveils KizON - a Child-Tracking Wristband

Kid and baby tech is a fast-growing industry with great potential, and numerous Indiegogo and Kickstarter start-ups already speculate on that - smart diapers that can analyze and warn if your baby is developing urinary infections, smart baby suits that measure your baby's heart rate, temperature and breathing patterns, or a smart baby car seat that triggers a cocoon-like shield over your baby in case of an impact are just a tip of the iceberg. Smart baby bottles and bottle holders, baby wipes warmers, smart strollers with LCD touch screens and even gadgets that claim to analyze your baby's cry and tell you if something is wrong.

Many pediatricians welcome smart baby and kid tech, but fear the speculation on first time parents may result in developers and manufacturers abusing the inexperienced parents’ paranoia. 'Baby durables' as they are called by market analysts are expected to increase in sales in the US retail stores from $2.6bn in 2012 to $2.9bn in 2018, according to Mintel research firm quoted by BBC.

Kid-controlling apps and software have been around for quite some time now, and sooner rather than later we expected a kid-tracking gadget to come along.

Image source: LG

LG's KizON wristband is a Wi-Fi and GPS equipped gadget with 36 hour battery life, 125MB Rom and 64MB RAM and most importantly, with a fast dial of a parent's phone number and the One Step Direct Call feature, which enables parents to call their kids or simply listen to what they are doing.

Clearly, the tracking wristband will let parent track and locate their children wherever they are, provided the kids have the wristband on, and the battery is alive. The gadget comes in pink, blue and green; is water and stain resistant; made of plastic and aimed at preschoolers and primary school children.

The media have raised concerns about constant tracking and surveilling children, while another group of those who always need to oppose something suggested that parents may become too reliant on technology to keep their kids safe, and let young kids venture out too far unsupervised, which can cause even more trouble.

Truth be told, if a parent is lazy or irresponsible enough to rely on a wristband to keep a young child safe there is little remedy to that. On the other hand, this particular device can be used for a great good. Think bullying at schools, and what could a gadget like that mean in your child's life. It has the potential to be a life saver and a proof recorder that will help children and their parents fight the plague that has spread all over the American system of education. However, the gadget needs to be a little bit less conspicuous to be used as an anti-bullying surveillance tool. Nonetheless, when you drive your kids to school, you will know they remain within the school until you come to pick them up.

There may be more cases when a KizON and the likes of it can be life savers. Think elderly people with Alzheimer who venture out without telling anyone and get lost, or kids with autism, or simply kids on a camping trip with their teacher. The only downside I can imagine here is the price of the gadget and the short battery life, but the latter can be expanded over time, as the technology evolves.

KizON is scheduled to hit the shelves in South Korea on July 10th, with further roll out to Europe and North America, but the pricing has not been revealed yet.