Touchpoint 2.0: Leather Gloves With A Tech Twist
During the winter time, we basically need to make a choice between our hands being warm and being able to use our phones. Over the last couple of years, things have improved a little with some companies making things with e-tips, but those aren’t usually the most attractive or warm. A young company called August Brand wants to change that with their Touchpoint 2.0 leather gloves.
Anything new these days calls for a Kickstarter, so theirs went up earlier this week and blew past their goal of $2000 right away. At the time of this writing, they have already raised over $13,000 (CAD). There are already leather touchscreen-capable gloves out there, but what sets these apart from the pack is that each glove has a set of NFC tags built into the middle finger and wrist of each hand.
These tags are easily programmable to do pretty much anything you want using apps like Trigger. I can speak personally for the usefulness of Trigger, as I used to use it as a means for quickly pairing with my Bluetooth after-market head unit in my car. Having the ability to “trigger” events or open apps simply by tapping your phone to your wrist or your finger might not sound like a major convenience, but it’s very possible that you could find it invaluable once you get used to having it.
[td_youtube url=”https:\/\/nickschiwy.com//nickschiwy.com//www.youtube.com/watch?v=yARoRjKCMxU” width=”700″] [/td_youtube]
August Brand seems to have a very high attention to detail with their products, and the Touchpoint 2.0 will be no different. They come in two styles, quilt and rider and both are made of sheepskin leather with a fleece lining. The technology is the same in both styles as well, with cloth fingertips on the forefinger and thumb that allow the gloves to work with a touchscreen. I have to admit that I was skeptical at first, but after further investigation, the Touchpoints appear to be very high quality, as long as everything goes according to their plan.
Nothing else like this really exists, so its hard to really gauge the pricing for this product, but comparing them to other high-quality gloves makes the price seem like it’s not too outrageous. One pair originally was costing 55 CAD ($43.87), but those were the early-bird special and there were only 25 of them available. Now the cheapest option is 60 CAD ($47.86), which still isn’t too bad, but they won’t last forever. The retail price for the gloves appear to be 65 CAD ($51.85), so be sure to hurry if you want to snag a deal on the Touchpoint 2.0. Of course, buying in bulk does save you a little bit.
As with all Kickstarter projects, there is going to be a delay between your payment and the eventual manufacture and delivery of the product – and don’t be surprised if they run into delays. The planned timeline includes a finished Kickstarter on April 5th, manufacturing in June & July and then shipment sometime thereafter (presumably September if everything goes off without a hitch). Hopefully I will be able to get my hands on a pair of Touchpoint 2.0 gloves at some point and give them a full review so that you know what you’re getting into, but they probably won’t appear for sale on their website until much later this year.