Prana is back with a new breathing & posture wearable
Prana is back with a new device that combines breath and posture tracking to help you de-stress and get rid of bad habits.
To remind the company had launched its original product back in 2016 via Indiegogo. That one came in the form of a little disc that clips to your waistband to track the way both your diaphragm and chest move in and out while you breathe and the position of your body. The idea was to facilitate the interconnection between good breathing and good posture to reduce stress. Ultimately, the product was discontinued because of technical challenges with the design.
This next generation device offers an improved form factor and features. The main functionality, however, is the same. As before, the wearable tracks diaphragmatic breaking and monitors posture.
Breathing exercises are an important part of the functionality. Prana spits out 80 scientifically validated breathing exercises targeting specific physiological effects. Real-time sensor feedback lets you know how well you are doing. These can help with stress relief, increased energy, improved focus and better sleep. Or simply teaching you how two properly breathe. The exercises can be combined with posture feedback.
In addition to this Training mode, there’s a Passive mode which tracks your breathing and posture (upper and lower back) in the background. In this mode you can receive alerts, for example if Prana notices stressed breathing or a slouching posture.
As shown in the picture below, the app shows a graph illustrating your breathing and posture. There’s also a Live Graph mode that provides instant data.
Prana comes in the form of a circular retractible design. It reminds a bit of the standard chest strap, only worn slightly lower on your body – on the torso. No special clothing is required.
In Training mode, you are meant to wear it anywhere between 3 and 15 minutes. In Passive mode you can wear it as long as you want regardless whether you are sitting, standing or lying down.
A novel aspect to Prana is the gamified mode. It allows you to control a flying bird in the smartphone app with your breathing. The character flies up when you inhale, and swoops down when you exhale. By carefully controlling your breath you are meant to collect flowers along the route. Slouching stops all movement.
Another aspect to the wearable is the haptic training. It guides you through meditation letting you know via vibrations when to inhale, exhale and hold. That coaching feature sounds like a great tool for those getting into to mindfulness practices.
The device itself is very lightweight. It measures 0.6” x 1.89” x 2.75” and comes in at only 26.7 grams. There’s a status LED and vibrational element on-board, along with Bluetooth tech and posture sensors. The rechargeable battery lasts about a day of continuous use.
All in all, version two of Prana sounds like a significant upgrade on the original device. Those interested can check out the $199 device on the company’s website. Currently there’s only an iOS app, but the Android version is coming soon in the near future. If you are not happy with the product the company provides a 30 day money back guarantee.
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