Sensoria is getting into the high-tech shoe game.
The Seattle-area startup today debuted its first-ever running shoe, which retails for $199 and features embedded textile pressure sensors designed to provide real-time biometric feedback.
The pressure sensors are located at the plantar area of your foot and send data to a detachable electronic device on the heel of the shoe packed with an accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer. The combined technology gives runners detailed information about their running form.
Sensoria calls its new product, available for $99 for pre-orders that will ship in March, the “world’s first textile sensor infused running shoes.”
“While products like Fitbit count your steps, the most important metrics in a run are your pace, cadence, foot landing and the impact that you generate each time you hit the ground,” Sensoria CEO Davide Vigano said in a statement. “You want to protect your engine: your legs, knees and feet. With the new Sensoria Smart Running Shoes, you’ll get valuable and accurate biometrics to help you improve with each consecutive run as well as run longer and healthier.”
Data from the shoe sensors is sent to Sensoria’s smartphone app, which features an artificial intelligence-powered virtual coach that can provide real-time audio feedback about biometrics during a run.
The detachable device can also snap into Sensoria’s smart socks. The company also sells smart bras and smart shirts that track your movements.
Sensoria’s new shoes are similar to other products released by companies like Asics and Under Armour, along with smaller startups. Putting sensors in shoes isn’t a new idea, but as Wareable noted in 2015, there are numerous challenges with implementing the technology and ultimately creating value for the consumer.
Vigano founded Sensoria in 2011 with his former Microsoft colleagues. The startup this month announced a new spinoff company, Sensoria Health, formed in partnership with Genesis Healthcare, the largest post-acute care provider in the U.S. It also partnered with Microsoft last year to develop “smart soccer boots,” and partnered with Renault last year to build a smart racing suit for professional racecar drivers.
