Don"t worry, be happy at the beach with Vodafone"s Smart Swimwear

Going to the beach was a challenge for women in the late 1800s as the custom was to remain fully clothed and reveal no skin. But then the times changed. Once tanning became a fashion trend, people started spending more time in the sun and swimwear became more revealing. IoT is now taking over this segment, as well.

Just when we thought IoT innovation could no longer surprise us, Vodafone comes up with a smart swimwear concept. You read that right – a smart bikini, swim shorts and a sun hat for the kids are in proof-of-concept stage. Once connected to the Internet, the device sends notifications on your smartphone about your beach experience.

Why would we want that? If you”re the type of person who forgets to put on sun block every two hours, then this is the device for you. Besides reminding you to rub lotion all over yourself, the new “Smart Summer” swimwear is made up of tiny sensors which will also keep track of sun movement and UV rays to prevent sun burn, while the tracking device in the hat will immediately notify you if your child wanders off somewhere. So far, the battery lasts for one week, but developers hope to improve this in the future to lasting up to ten years on a charge.

“Companies in every industry are already embracing IoT technologies and see these as critical to their future. The launch of new narrowband IoT networks next year will take this remarkable revolution to a whole new level,” said Eric Brenneis, Vodafone IoT Director.

Not much has so far been mentioned about the security of these devices, but it”s obvious that if a sensor malfunctions or is corrupt, what starts as a wonderful day at the beach with the family may turn into a baking in the sun experience. While such connected devices are great on paper and could revolutionize the consumer market, their actual implementation may be slow due to further required maintenance in the development stage.