It’s been pretty well established that sitting and not moving your body for long stretches of time is bad for your health. Though companies have created means for minimizing the risk, such as standing desks, most of us who work and/or play at their computers are still sitting all the time. Rather than getting computer users to stand up, crowdsourced desk-based exercise device Hovr lets you to move your legs and simulate walking while staying seated.
Related: Stay awake at your desk with a balance board
The Hovr is a pretty simple apparatus, really. It’s a pair of suspended circular foot pads connected by a metal bar, which is attached to an adjustable strap. Depending on the model, you can either mount the device to the bottom of your desk, or buy a portable unit attached to a plastic stand. Users place their feet on the floating pads and move their legs around; you can pretend you’re walking or swing your legs in any direction. Of course, there’s also a companion app for iOS and Android, which allows you to track your movement and set daily “walking” goals.
While it looks like the kind of snake oil you’d expect to see on an infomercial, it turns out there are experts backing up Hovr’s efficacy: The device has been certified as a form of Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis by the Mayo Clinic , which is basically a fancy way of saying that using it counts as moving. According to the company, researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago found that using the Hovr caused users to burn 17-percent more calories than completely sedentary sitters.
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Those endorsements may explain the device’s popularity: The Hovr hit its $30,000 crowdfunding goal on Indiegogo in just three days. As of Thursday afternoon, the device raised more than $40,000. Its success prompted Hovr to set a campaign stretch goal; if it raises $60,000 before closing next month, backers will be allowed to choose the color of their Hovrs. It comes in Black, Red, Blue, and Pink.
Indiegogo customers can pre-order the mountable version of the Hovr for $44, and the “portable” stand-based unit costs $79. According to the company, those prices will rise after the campaign. The Hovr is expected to ship to backers in July.
Mozilla is giving Firefox’s Smart Window two new tricks. If you haven’t tried it yet, Smart Window is an optional AI mode in Firefox with a built-in chat that helps you get things done while you browse. With this update, it can fill out online forms using details from your tabs and keep an eye on websites for you.
Tired of typing the same details into every form?
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.