The popularity of adult leagues proves that after-work sports have become just as vital as the after-school variety, while the success of Meetup shows that like-minded strangers enjoy networking in the flesh. These two trends converge with the arrival of new location-based apps that connect recreational athletes and ensure that they may never again have to mount an elliptical or treadmill, solo, to get in their cardio work.
Sportaneous: This website and free iPhone app collects information about public recreation areas, providing real-time information about games being organized in users’ vicinity. With competitive activities ranging from baseball and basketball to boot camp and yoga, it’s easy to find social sports gatherings that range in location, schedule, skill level, and players’ preferred competitive intensity. As the name suggests, anyone can use the app to spontaneously initiate a game, for which the app will help find available players. It could prove to be a fitting training tool among those looking for companions with whom to prepare for a certain upcoming marathon.
From documenting what they eat to where they go to how much they spend to even the vitality of their sex lives, people who’ve never even kept a journal have become seduced by the ease with which technology facilitates tracking their lives. Thus, it comes as no surprise that new tools to help track personal fitness are emerging every day.
Under Armour E39: Coaches may soon have a streamlined approach to evaluating potential draft picks. Under Armour partnered with software company Zephyr to create a new piece of high-tech equipment that was tested at the recent NFL Combine. Several prospects at this year’s invitational camp (including recent Heisman winner and endorser Cam Newton) wore compression shirts with a core sensor that tracked information like motion, heart rate, acceleration, and g force. The E39, or “bug,” then broadcast, via Bluetooth, player vitals to scouts’ laptops, iPads and smartphones. The NFL has more plans to test sensor technology in the future but, in the meantime, the sophisticated E39 tracker will only be available to athletes, schools and trainers with Under Armour contracts.
As March Madness reaches its peak, the wallets of those in-office betting pools are thinning, while the waistlines of fans jamming flatscreen-ensconced bars are fattening. Either way, with 68 teams in the tournament, it can be a challenge just to keep up. However, a number of new digital media innovations are giving fans of all sports new ways to interact with, and/or filter, can’t-miss games and events.
Apple TV’s Live Sports Streaming: Cord cutting has become an increasing threat to cable companies, so some are doing whatever it takes (no matter how controversial) to offer subscribers place-shifting flexibility. That said, sports fans are one of the holdout consumer segments when it comes to hard wire liberation. But with the recent announcement that Apple TV will begin offering access to MLB.TV and NBA League Pass, it’s not hard to envision a new wave of TV viewers breaking out the proverbial pliers. Although Roku has offered similar functionality for a while, and Xbox Live boasts ESPN content, the ‘Apple Effect’ tends to mark shifts in consumption patterns, so this could be a tipping point.
The American International Toy Fair is so crowded with exhibitors that it’s easy for promising new toys to slip through the cracks. Here’s a rundown of a few that, while perhaps not receiving the press garnered by the items in yesterday’s Trendcentral, are most definitely worth noting.
Junior Scientists: Ever since the Extreme Mentos and Diet Coke video took YouTube by storm years ago, children have attempted to replicate the experiment at home. With this in mind, Be Amazing! Toys’ Geyser Rocket Car is powered by nothing more than the aforementioned candy and soda. For more environmentally-minded tots, DuneCraft’s new character-based Eco Plant Pals, which are packaged in corn resin domes and come with collectable trading cards, offer a modern alternative to the Chia Pet. Bigshot is an educational camera kit that exposes underprivileged children to science and engineering concepts—such as optics, mechanics, electromagnetism and image processing—through building an actual camera. Still in prototype phase, the project was inspired in part by the documentary Born Into Brothels.
The global toy industry boasts an estimated market value of $75 billion, so this week’s American International Toy Fair brought hunters of the newest trends in play to New York’s Javits Center in droves. So overwhelming was the show that Trendcentral will be covering it over the next two days. Today’s report summarizes some of the dominant themes emanating from the show, while tomorrow’s will highlight a few compelling new toys to watch for. Stay tuned.
3D: 3D movies account for more than half of cinema ticket sales, according to some, so naturally the toy industry is attempting to capitalize on the trend. As reported this fall, Hasbro’s My3D allows children to view photo and video content, as well as play games, on the iPhone in 3D. The toymaker has teamed with DreamWorks Animation to develop special content to use with the device, such as an app that simulates a diver’s eye perspective of a coral reef. Perhaps more of a fashion statement, Hasbro introduced Transformers Cine-Mask 3D Masks as part of its Transformers Robo Power line. Kids no longer need to look like Elvis Costello when watching 3D flicks; rather, they can disguise themselves as Optimus Prime and Bumblebee.
