14 ms·

Jewelbots – A Friendship Bracelet You Can Code

281 points by le-mark 9y ago

j_s 9y ago
Grabbing popcorn for firestorm over title editorialization... hurry up mod squad! edit: ("Coding Bracelet for Girls" or some-such) PS. Now that's this comment is flagged (hidden from the public discussion), I can 99.9% guarantee it will happen. Oh well, I delayed it for a few minutes. ... Looks like the mods made it in time. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15227936 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15227936
- deleted 9y ago
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- deleted 9y ago
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shostack 9y ago
On a related note, can anyone suggest sites with great educational/fun gifts like this for girls?
- dominotw 9y ago
  >for girls what do you mean?
- j_s 9y ago
  Looking forward to seeing other recommendations (perhaps more specific, and best with personal anecdata). · Ask HN: Know of any non-digital toys/games that teach, for 6-10 year olds? | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14942570 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14942570 (Aug 2017, 71 comments) · Elementary School Coding & Robotics Resources | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r1b2CM1uTdST47IbWa7zlZYmbfoqrgYSeym2inUvnFo/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r1b2CM1uTdST47IbWa7zlZYm... found on: Project Bloks: Making code physical for kids | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11986593 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11986593 (Jun 2016) · http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ReviewLittleBitsGadgetsAndGizmosElectronicsKitsForSTEMKids.aspx http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ReviewLittleBitsGadgetsAndGizm... (Jan 2016) <- links to 3 previous posts with additional recommendations · Teaching a 3-Year-Old to Program Without a Computer Screen (Cubetto - https://www.primotoys.com/ https://www.primotoys.com/) | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10586661 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10586661 (Nov 2015, 35 comments) · DragonBox: Secretly teach algebra to your children | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9469364 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9469364 (May 2015, 100 comments) · Osmo (iPad app with add-on hardware) | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7784243 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7784243 (May 2014, 104 comments) · Turn anything into a videogame controller, even a banana (https://makeymakey.com/ https://makeymakey.com/) | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3971869 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3971869 (May 2012, 25 comments) Robot Turtles (http://www.robotturtles.com/ http://www.robotturtles.com/) makes a good jumping-off point for further research as it is a favorite in this category: https://hn.algolia.com/?query=robot%20turtles&sort=byDate&type=comment https://hn.algolia.com/?query=robot%20turtles&sort=byDate&ty... -- PS. volunteer application re-opens Feb 2018: https://www.tealsk12.org/ https://www.tealsk12.org/ pair volunteer CS professionals across the US with classroom teachers
- jonbaer 9y ago
  I'd recommend the Adabox from Adafruit, it's a subscription service ... https://www.adafruit.com/adabox https://www.adafruit.com/adabox
- KekDemaga 9y ago
  Raspberry Pi is always my go to for 8+ year olds.
kdamken 9y ago
Holy moly that website does a bad job of describing what they actually do. Apparently you can program the lights and vibrations? I looked up a YouTube video, apparently they can be programmed for notifications from your phone? Marketing team really dropped the ball on this one.
- 727374 9y ago
  I agree it could do better explaining what Jewelbots are, but I wouldn't assume there's a dedicated "marketing team" for this product yet.
  - sarajo 9y ago
    Hi! We're a 5 person team located in NYC. I'm the marketing team (plus my cofounder Brooke). This is all super helpful feedback, thank you!
- addicted 9y ago
  I thought it was pretty well done considering the target audience. Brief tagline "Friendship bracelet. That you can code" to pique your interest. Then a user story showing how someone actually used it. I'm sure it can be improved significantly, but I feel the idea behind pitching why you would want to buy it (it's a friendship bracelet that does cool things like light up the same color when you're together) as opposed to its capabilities is not necessarily that far off the mark for a product of this nature (e.g. the Apple Watch landing page as of right now doesn't describe anything about what the Watch can do...it's just selling the fact that it's a watch).
- untog 9y ago
  I disagree. "When Nyla got Jewelbots for her birthday she gave the second one to Wenhao, a girl in her class." "Nyla and Wenhao's Jewelbots light up blue when they are together (Blue is Wenhao's favorite color)" "They make a secret language just for their Jewelbots. Sending one buzz means "look behind you!"." "Using the power of STEM, Nyla and her friends make games and custom friend animations by writing code and uploading it to their Jewelbots!" That pretty unambigiously describes a piece of programmable jewellery to me. It's doing it in a more story-driven way than presenting a bulleted list of specs, but given the target audience that makes sense. Having read that page I'm really not even slightly confused about what it is.
fmitchell0 9y ago
this is great
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BearGoesChirp 9y ago
The biggest issues that would prevent me from getting something like this for those in my family who wear bracelets is the lack of color customizing and bulkiness of the bot. But I like the idea and I'm guessing both of these issues will be worked on in the future.
sudosteph 9y ago
I want to be cynical because I hate the idea that a gadget has to have "jewel" in the name and be a fancy "friendship bracelet" to appeal to girls. But it's a neat little trinket that somebody worked hard on, and if it really was a young woman who designed it to enjoy with their friends, I can't really hold that against them. I don't think scaring away guys from it by saying it's "for girls" is doing them any favors though. Thinking back though, one gadget I remember being very appealing to kids of both sexes was Tamagotchi. It would be cool if someone made a more customizeable/programmable/less annoying version those in a wearable format.
- jff 9y ago
  Yeah, with a different 'face', I think boys would think this was cool too. I know 9 year old me though 'secret codes' were very cool, so I'd have probably been into it.
- sarajo 9y ago
  Hi! We talked to over 200 girls when making this product, rest assured that every design decision was made with their feedback in mind. Boys also love playing with Jewelbots, but there are already a lot of coding toys aimed at boys!!! Our market primarily identifies as female, but we'll broaden down the road.
  - sudosteph 9y ago
    I think this is where we disagree a little. I don't think most coding toys actually are mostly aimed at boys. How would that even work? Do they require a Y chromosome to operate or something? They're just marketed to boys (and parents of boys), and parents and children alike buy in. The toy market today is highly segregated in marketing to boys vs girls, and toys that were not specifically "gendered" in the past are in the "Boys" section today (or sometimes vice versa). For example, I know that when I was a kid I hated that any trip to McD's included me awkwardly going up to the front counter to exchange for the "boy" toys because I thought windup toys were more fun than dolls or pink bracelets or whatever. My favorite toys were things like beyblades, zoids, k'nex you know, things that I could build with and would move. I was never not a girl for finding toys marketed to boys as more fun. I just knew that the toys that were in the "boys" section were more stimulating to me (and my sister felt the same too). I was lucky enough to have parents who didn't care, but some do and it just creates a cycle where girls say they prefer things that are targeted to girls (as opposed to the large number of toys that are only marketed to boys), and market researchers see that success and double-down, just making more stereotypically "girly" toys that sell to that defined market segment instead of making more gender-neutral toys with more inclusive ads (because they're afraid that advertising to girls will scare off boys). So that's my concern here. I'm glad that girls and boys alike love jewelbots already, but do fear that explicitly saying that they are "for girls" will implicitly give credence to the idea that other toys are "for boys". As engineers we should not promote the idea that science toys without sparkles or pink on them are for boys, it should just be for kids. It limits the range of creative exploration available to girls who are trying to learn both science, and who they are and what conforming to social pressure allows if you tell them that they need to like girl oriented toys b/c everything else is for boys.
pg_bot 9y ago
Anyone who is active in the NYC JS scene knows Sara Chipps, the CEO of Jewelbots. She has given a couple talks about what it takes to run a hardware startup, and has been a wonderful member of the community. I only wish her and co. the best of success with everything they have put together, the new version looks great!
- sarajo 9y ago
  This is so kind, thank you!!
- pls2halp 9y ago
  > JS scene I don’t want to be an asshole, but ಠ_ಠ
  - sctb 9y ago
    Could you please not post unless you have something substantive and on-topic to say? https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- j_s 9y ago
  Sara Chipps (Jewelbots) | Navigating the Hardware World with Software Experience https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HKzQ00MZMs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HKzQ00MZMs (Jun 2016)
- frankdenbow 9y ago
  She also started GirlDevelopIt and has been a staple in the NYC community for a while. Happy to see her on here!
  - sarajo 9y ago
    <3!!
jacobrobbins 9y ago
my company shared an office with the Jewelbots team and I was very impressed at the user testing they did. The bracelet is a great user-programmable product for 8-14 year olds, which is really a difficult age group to design for.
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VohuMana 9y ago
Wow, this is awesome! I wish I had these when I was a kid.
daveguy 9y ago
This would be a lot better if it was priced closer to cost. $70 is excessive for an a few RGB LEDs, microcontroller and a buzz motor. These things can't cost more than $10 to manufacture even at low scale. You have to buy at least 2 for it to be interesting they should sell them for $20-$40 each. Maybe the pricing will come down as they get orders. Very cool concept though. I hope they have some patents on it or they will be seriously undercut.
- tyingq 9y ago
  You are leaving out a few things, like battery, charging, bluetooth, etc. Agree that lower pricing would help though. Perhaps hoping that early adopters can pay off things like the plastic molds, phone apps, and design.
- mixologic 9y ago
  Maybe it changed since you posted this, but 129$ for a three pack sounds like a decent price, and pretty close to what you're saying. That being said, however, I think they should figure out a way to get the multi packs able to be purchased by multiple groups of parents. This looks like great fun for a group, and sad on its own, but parents probably don't want to buy expensive-ish toys for their kids friends. Then again, the easy thing to do here would probably be to have each one come with a few one time use coupon codes to give to their friends parents. "Recruit a friend into your squad and get 30$ off" etc.
  - sarajo 9y ago
    Yes! I love this idea and we are working on something similar currently.
- sarajo 9y ago
  We do have patents, thank goodness! Our manufacturing costs are no where near $10, that would be amazing. We have a more advanced chipset than a Fitbit and all the capabilities of an Apple Watch (without the screen). Jewelbots can have 8 simultaneous central and peripheral relationships via bluetooth. We are the only wearable device that talks to other wearable devices! (we are also completely open source!)
revmoo 9y ago
If this site keeps posting flat-out ads and content marketing I'm done.
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- revmoo 9y ago
  Right? This site is turning into a wasteland. I'm fine just switching to lobste.rs entirely if the folks running things can't get their act together. Wait, what does that flagged message on OP mean? All he said was that this post is clearly an ad.
tzakrajs 9y ago
This reminds me of the badges at Queercon that are specifically made to interact with each other via radios or physical connection. https://hackaday.com/2017/08/07/inside-this-years-queercon-badge/ https://hackaday.com/2017/08/07/inside-this-years-queercon-b...
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thebiglebrewski 9y ago
Cool site and congrats to this team! Love the idea and the execution.
kemonocode 9y ago
The idea by itself is pretty great, however I think the site could do better at conveying what a Jewelbot can do. Apparently it has lights and vibration and it can communicate wirelessly- what else? Would it be possible to use it as a smart token / have it interact with other gadgets? Also, would you consider designing a version with a little embedded LCD screen to go with the programmable LEDs?
reconbot 9y ago
I was able to get in on the kickstarter and while I'm far from the target market I've found this a lot fun to play with. It's like an arduino with decent bluetooth and a tiny form factor. I know some people on the team, they're great. But I also have a long history of working with microcontrollers in a semi educational setting (http://nodebots.io http://nodebots.io) and these are by far the least frustrating way to use wireless anything I've come across.
irrational 9y ago
Well, I thought this would be the perfect Christmas gift for my 10 year old daughter, but $99 is just too much (at least for my budget). This does seem to be a great idea. Maybe they'll come out with a cheaper version at some point.
- sarajo 9y ago
  Hi! If you want, you could use the code FACEBOOK for 25% off. I don't know if that gets closer to your budget. If not, email me at sara[at]jewelbots.com. Our goal is to get as many of these into little hands as possible.
jeswin 9y ago
Congratulations on launch and I really, really want you guys to succeed. However, the copy below is a little off-putting. >Jewelbots patent pending bluetooth connection takes friendship to the next level by responding to your besties whenever you are together. a) What's the patentable invention here? If it's a programmable watch or something like that, I'd be very scared. b) Your target audience should be encouraged to share and experiment, which is the opposite of what the currently broken patent system does. I'm not complaining about the fact that you have patents as much as the advertising that you hold them.
- sarajo 9y ago
  Hi! Our patent covers the ability to communicate from wearable to wearable using BLE. I hope that he fact that we're completely open source, from hardware to firmware to software, encourages others to share. As far as advertising, I get that. Feedback received. Thanks.
  - Invictus0 9y ago
    While I second the first commenter in hoping that you succeed, I also really hope you never get that patent. That's almost as bad as Apple patenting rounded rectangles.
    - rudedogg 9y ago
      > That's almost as bad as Apple patenting rounded rectangles. It's worse. The rounded rectangle patent was a design patent, by the wording used above I'm guessing they're after a utility patent.
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  - sidlls 9y ago
    That shouldn't be patentable. Bluetooth's entire purpose is to serve as a means for devices to communicate.
intrasight 9y ago
I think it's: a. a very cool product b. a good strategy to get more girls interested in CS If my "girl" was still 13 she and her friends would want to have these.
rapsacnz 9y ago
As a proud dad of 3 incredible girls, I am very glad this product exists. I understand the argument that it would be great to not have gendered products at all meaning kids could choose what they want without any outside influence. Unfortunately, we don't live in that world yet (and it could be a while off) In the meantime, I can now buy a product that: 1. Encourages my girls to get into STEM. 2. Is not a hard sell. My girls are socialized to like girly stuff. I am only partly responsible for this - the outside pressures and influences on my children are huge and very hard to resist. So you could argue that this product is a compromise, but it's one I'll gladly make.
- phalangion 9y ago
  Even without socialization, I'd bet some girls will still like girly stuff.
  - lphnull 9y ago
    males can like girly stuff too
  - addicted 9y ago
    The problem isn’t that girls like “girly” stuff. The problem is that stuff is defined as “girly”.
    - Double_a_92 9y ago
      That's because boys usually don't like it...? Or do you mean that "girly" is seen as something negative?
- johnm1019 9y ago
  Why do men and women need to be the same? Isn't it ok to be different?
  - ShaneWilton 9y ago
    It's absolutely okay to be different. In fact, everybody is different, and that's one of the big problems with trying to slot people into one of two buckets.
qq66 9y ago
My niece could really like this. She's really into "girly" stuff like princesses and flouncy dresses. Something where she programs her jewelry will be far more interesting to her than something where she programs a race car.
adamkaz 9y ago
I'm all for making it more appealing for everyone to learn to code, but I was torn over this product by a comment made by Sara Chipps on the Giant Robots podcast (http://giantrobots.fm/246 http://giantrobots.fm/246). One of the use cases she mentions is "...4 buzzes means the guy you like is nearby...".
- marktangotango 9y ago
  > Learn to code->it will help you get a guy. I don't think I reasonable person would get this from the quote you posted. Does it even appear in any of the material on the site? Or was it an off the cuff example in an interview? Regardless, I'm unclear on why this is offensive, can you elaborate?
  - adamkaz 9y ago
    I guess the simplification I drew may not apply to everyone (edited). The off the cuff example given in the interview seemed to reinforce the idea that middleschool girls should be worried about guys and that didn't seem very empowering to me.
    - dguaraglia 9y ago
      I understand where you are coming from and I appreciate the thought, but - if you think about it from a teenager's perspective - it's a very relatable example. Teens will be teens, and they will communicate about that kind of stuff no matter what. If I had daughters, I'd be really proud if they programmed their own little protocol rather than just sending paper notes back and forth :)
jmnicholson 9y ago
Super admirable goal and super tough task. Kudos on the progress!
ChrisRR 9y ago
There was a great episode on on Jewelbots on the Embedded.fm podcast which is worth a listen. In fact the podcast is worth a listen in general http://embedded.fm/episodes/173 http://embedded.fm/episodes/173
danra 9y ago
CppCast episode: http://cppcast.com/2017/04/sara-chipps/ http://cppcast.com/2017/04/sara-chipps/
snarfy 9y ago
You have got to get that price down. $69. You can get a 3G android smartwatch phone for $65 [1]. [1] https://www.gearbest.com/smart-watch-phone/pp_507114.html https://www.gearbest.com/smart-watch-phone/pp_507114.html
bambax 9y ago
Funny how the conversation seems to hover around gender. Who cares? I have children of both genders (2 boys, 1 girl) and they really like the same things. The girl is a little more outdoorsy and the boys like screens more, it seems, but I don't esp. attribute that to gender, more to their personal inclination. All three love roller skating, and cooking, and yelling, and also, making houses with blankets and pillows. Anyway, one point the FAQ doesn't seem to cover is how is this thing powered and how long does a charge last? Can it beep and hum and do the things it does, for at least a full day?
- sarajo 9y ago
  Thanks for your feedback! Adding today.
misterHN 9y ago
friendship bracelets are made, and the raw materials are strips of flexible plastic
iceManChild 9y ago
This sound like the idea laid out in the book PopCo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PopCo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PopCo). It is a good read.

281 points by le-mark 9y ago

j_s 9y ago

Grabbing popcorn for firestorm over title editorialization... hurry up mod squad! edit: ("Coding Bracelet for Girls" or some-such) PS. Now that's this comment is flagged (hidden from the public discussion), I can 99.9% guarantee it will happen. Oh well, I delayed it for a few minutes. ... Looks like the mods made it in time. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15227936 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15227936

deleted 9y ago
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shostack 9y ago

On a related note, can anyone suggest sites with great educational/fun gifts like this for girls?

dominotw 9y ago
>for girls what do you mean?
j_s 9y ago
Looking forward to seeing other recommendations (perhaps more specific, and best with personal anecdata). · Ask HN: Know of any non-digital toys/games that teach, for 6-10 year olds? | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14942570 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14942570 (Aug 2017, 71 comments) · Elementary School Coding & Robotics Resources | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r1b2CM1uTdST47IbWa7zlZYmbfoqrgYSeym2inUvnFo/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r1b2CM1uTdST47IbWa7zlZYm... found on: Project Bloks: Making code physical for kids | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11986593 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11986593 (Jun 2016) · http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ReviewLittleBitsGadgetsAndGizmosElectronicsKitsForSTEMKids.aspx http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ReviewLittleBitsGadgetsAndGizm... (Jan 2016) <- links to 3 previous posts with additional recommendations · Teaching a 3-Year-Old to Program Without a Computer Screen (Cubetto - https://www.primotoys.com/ https://www.primotoys.com/) | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10586661 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10586661 (Nov 2015, 35 comments) · DragonBox: Secretly teach algebra to your children | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9469364 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9469364 (May 2015, 100 comments) · Osmo (iPad app with add-on hardware) | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7784243 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7784243 (May 2014, 104 comments) · Turn anything into a videogame controller, even a banana (https://makeymakey.com/ https://makeymakey.com/) | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3971869 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3971869 (May 2012, 25 comments) Robot Turtles (http://www.robotturtles.com/ http://www.robotturtles.com/) makes a good jumping-off point for further research as it is a favorite in this category: https://hn.algolia.com/?query=robot%20turtles&sort=byDate&type=comment https://hn.algolia.com/?query=robot%20turtles&sort=byDate&ty... -- PS. volunteer application re-opens Feb 2018: https://www.tealsk12.org/ https://www.tealsk12.org/ pair volunteer CS professionals across the US with classroom teachers
jonbaer 9y ago
I'd recommend the Adabox from Adafruit, it's a subscription service ... https://www.adafruit.com/adabox https://www.adafruit.com/adabox
KekDemaga 9y ago
Raspberry Pi is always my go to for 8+ year olds.

kdamken 9y ago

Holy moly that website does a bad job of describing what they actually do. Apparently you can program the lights and vibrations? I looked up a YouTube video, apparently they can be programmed for notifications from your phone? Marketing team really dropped the ball on this one.

727374 9y ago
I agree it could do better explaining what Jewelbots are, but I wouldn't assume there's a dedicated "marketing team" for this product yet.
- sarajo 9y ago
  Hi! We're a 5 person team located in NYC. I'm the marketing team (plus my cofounder Brooke). This is all super helpful feedback, thank you!
addicted 9y ago
I thought it was pretty well done considering the target audience. Brief tagline "Friendship bracelet. That you can code" to pique your interest. Then a user story showing how someone actually used it. I'm sure it can be improved significantly, but I feel the idea behind pitching why you would want to buy it (it's a friendship bracelet that does cool things like light up the same color when you're together) as opposed to its capabilities is not necessarily that far off the mark for a product of this nature (e.g. the Apple Watch landing page as of right now doesn't describe anything about what the Watch can do...it's just selling the fact that it's a watch).
untog 9y ago
I disagree. "When Nyla got Jewelbots for her birthday she gave the second one to Wenhao, a girl in her class." "Nyla and Wenhao's Jewelbots light up blue when they are together (Blue is Wenhao's favorite color)" "They make a secret language just for their Jewelbots. Sending one buzz means "look behind you!"." "Using the power of STEM, Nyla and her friends make games and custom friend animations by writing code and uploading it to their Jewelbots!" That pretty unambigiously describes a piece of programmable jewellery to me. It's doing it in a more story-driven way than presenting a bulleted list of specs, but given the target audience that makes sense. Having read that page I'm really not even slightly confused about what it is.

fmitchell0 9y ago

this is great

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BearGoesChirp 9y ago

The biggest issues that would prevent me from getting something like this for those in my family who wear bracelets is the lack of color customizing and bulkiness of the bot. But I like the idea and I'm guessing both of these issues will be worked on in the future.

sudosteph 9y ago

I want to be cynical because I hate the idea that a gadget has to have "jewel" in the name and be a fancy "friendship bracelet" to appeal to girls. But it's a neat little trinket that somebody worked hard on, and if it really was a young woman who designed it to enjoy with their friends, I can't really hold that against them. I don't think scaring away guys from it by saying it's "for girls" is doing them any favors though. Thinking back though, one gadget I remember being very appealing to kids of both sexes was Tamagotchi. It would be cool if someone made a more customizeable/programmable/less annoying version those in a wearable format.

jff 9y ago
Yeah, with a different 'face', I think boys would think this was cool too. I know 9 year old me though 'secret codes' were very cool, so I'd have probably been into it.
sarajo 9y ago
Hi! We talked to over 200 girls when making this product, rest assured that every design decision was made with their feedback in mind. Boys also love playing with Jewelbots, but there are already a lot of coding toys aimed at boys!!! Our market primarily identifies as female, but we'll broaden down the road.
- sudosteph 9y ago
  I think this is where we disagree a little. I don't think most coding toys actually are mostly aimed at boys. How would that even work? Do they require a Y chromosome to operate or something? They're just marketed to boys (and parents of boys), and parents and children alike buy in. The toy market today is highly segregated in marketing to boys vs girls, and toys that were not specifically "gendered" in the past are in the "Boys" section today (or sometimes vice versa). For example, I know that when I was a kid I hated that any trip to McD's included me awkwardly going up to the front counter to exchange for the "boy" toys because I thought windup toys were more fun than dolls or pink bracelets or whatever. My favorite toys were things like beyblades, zoids, k'nex you know, things that I could build with and would move. I was never not a girl for finding toys marketed to boys as more fun. I just knew that the toys that were in the "boys" section were more stimulating to me (and my sister felt the same too). I was lucky enough to have parents who didn't care, but some do and it just creates a cycle where girls say they prefer things that are targeted to girls (as opposed to the large number of toys that are only marketed to boys), and market researchers see that success and double-down, just making more stereotypically "girly" toys that sell to that defined market segment instead of making more gender-neutral toys with more inclusive ads (because they're afraid that advertising to girls will scare off boys). So that's my concern here. I'm glad that girls and boys alike love jewelbots already, but do fear that explicitly saying that they are "for girls" will implicitly give credence to the idea that other toys are "for boys". As engineers we should not promote the idea that science toys without sparkles or pink on them are for boys, it should just be for kids. It limits the range of creative exploration available to girls who are trying to learn both science, and who they are and what conforming to social pressure allows if you tell them that they need to like girl oriented toys b/c everything else is for boys.

pg_bot 9y ago

Anyone who is active in the NYC JS scene knows Sara Chipps, the CEO of Jewelbots. She has given a couple talks about what it takes to run a hardware startup, and has been a wonderful member of the community. I only wish her and co. the best of success with everything they have put together, the new version looks great!

sarajo 9y ago
This is so kind, thank you!!
pls2halp 9y ago
> JS scene I don’t want to be an asshole, but ಠ_ಠ
- sctb 9y ago
  Could you please not post unless you have something substantive and on-topic to say? https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
j_s 9y ago
Sara Chipps (Jewelbots) | Navigating the Hardware World with Software Experience https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HKzQ00MZMs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HKzQ00MZMs (Jun 2016)
frankdenbow 9y ago
She also started GirlDevelopIt and has been a staple in the NYC community for a while. Happy to see her on here!
- sarajo 9y ago
  <3!!

jacobrobbins 9y ago

my company shared an office with the Jewelbots team and I was very impressed at the user testing they did. The bracelet is a great user-programmable product for 8-14 year olds, which is really a difficult age group to design for.

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VohuMana 9y ago

Wow, this is awesome! I wish I had these when I was a kid.

daveguy 9y ago

This would be a lot better if it was priced closer to cost. $70 is excessive for an a few RGB LEDs, microcontroller and a buzz motor. These things can't cost more than $10 to manufacture even at low scale. You have to buy at least 2 for it to be interesting they should sell them for $20-$40 each. Maybe the pricing will come down as they get orders. Very cool concept though. I hope they have some patents on it or they will be seriously undercut.

tyingq 9y ago
You are leaving out a few things, like battery, charging, bluetooth, etc. Agree that lower pricing would help though. Perhaps hoping that early adopters can pay off things like the plastic molds, phone apps, and design.
mixologic 9y ago
Maybe it changed since you posted this, but 129$ for a three pack sounds like a decent price, and pretty close to what you're saying. That being said, however, I think they should figure out a way to get the multi packs able to be purchased by multiple groups of parents. This looks like great fun for a group, and sad on its own, but parents probably don't want to buy expensive-ish toys for their kids friends. Then again, the easy thing to do here would probably be to have each one come with a few one time use coupon codes to give to their friends parents. "Recruit a friend into your squad and get 30$ off" etc.
- sarajo 9y ago
  Yes! I love this idea and we are working on something similar currently.
sarajo 9y ago
We do have patents, thank goodness! Our manufacturing costs are no where near $10, that would be amazing. We have a more advanced chipset than a Fitbit and all the capabilities of an Apple Watch (without the screen). Jewelbots can have 8 simultaneous central and peripheral relationships via bluetooth. We are the only wearable device that talks to other wearable devices! (we are also completely open source!)

revmoo 9y ago

If this site keeps posting flat-out ads and content marketing I'm done.

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revmoo 9y ago
Right? This site is turning into a wasteland. I'm fine just switching to lobste.rs entirely if the folks running things can't get their act together. Wait, what does that flagged message on OP mean? All he said was that this post is clearly an ad.

tzakrajs 9y ago

This reminds me of the badges at Queercon that are specifically made to interact with each other via radios or physical connection. https://hackaday.com/2017/08/07/inside-this-years-queercon-badge/ https://hackaday.com/2017/08/07/inside-this-years-queercon-b...

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thebiglebrewski 9y ago

Cool site and congrats to this team! Love the idea and the execution.

kemonocode 9y ago

The idea by itself is pretty great, however I think the site could do better at conveying what a Jewelbot can do. Apparently it has lights and vibration and it can communicate wirelessly- what else? Would it be possible to use it as a smart token / have it interact with other gadgets? Also, would you consider designing a version with a little embedded LCD screen to go with the programmable LEDs?

reconbot 9y ago

I was able to get in on the kickstarter and while I'm far from the target market I've found this a lot fun to play with. It's like an arduino with decent bluetooth and a tiny form factor. I know some people on the team, they're great. But I also have a long history of working with microcontrollers in a semi educational setting (http://nodebots.io http://nodebots.io) and these are by far the least frustrating way to use wireless anything I've come across.

irrational 9y ago

Well, I thought this would be the perfect Christmas gift for my 10 year old daughter, but $99 is just too much (at least for my budget). This does seem to be a great idea. Maybe they'll come out with a cheaper version at some point.

sarajo 9y ago
Hi! If you want, you could use the code FACEBOOK for 25% off. I don't know if that gets closer to your budget. If not, email me at sara[at]jewelbots.com. Our goal is to get as many of these into little hands as possible.

jeswin 9y ago

Congratulations on launch and I really, really want you guys to succeed. However, the copy below is a little off-putting. >Jewelbots patent pending bluetooth connection takes friendship to the next level by responding to your besties whenever you are together. a) What's the patentable invention here? If it's a programmable watch or something like that, I'd be very scared. b) Your target audience should be encouraged to share and experiment, which is the opposite of what the currently broken patent system does. I'm not complaining about the fact that you have patents as much as the advertising that you hold them.

sarajo 9y ago
Hi! Our patent covers the ability to communicate from wearable to wearable using BLE. I hope that he fact that we're completely open source, from hardware to firmware to software, encourages others to share. As far as advertising, I get that. Feedback received. Thanks.
- Invictus0 9y ago
  While I second the first commenter in hoping that you succeed, I also really hope you never get that patent. That's almost as bad as Apple patenting rounded rectangles.
  - rudedogg 9y ago
    > That's almost as bad as Apple patenting rounded rectangles. It's worse. The rounded rectangle patent was a design patent, by the wording used above I'm guessing they're after a utility patent.
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- sidlls 9y ago
  That shouldn't be patentable. Bluetooth's entire purpose is to serve as a means for devices to communicate.

intrasight 9y ago

I think it's: a. a very cool product b. a good strategy to get more girls interested in CS If my "girl" was still 13 she and her friends would want to have these.

rapsacnz 9y ago

As a proud dad of 3 incredible girls, I am very glad this product exists. I understand the argument that it would be great to not have gendered products at all meaning kids could choose what they want without any outside influence. Unfortunately, we don't live in that world yet (and it could be a while off) In the meantime, I can now buy a product that: 1. Encourages my girls to get into STEM. 2. Is not a hard sell. My girls are socialized to like girly stuff. I am only partly responsible for this - the outside pressures and influences on my children are huge and very hard to resist. So you could argue that this product is a compromise, but it's one I'll gladly make.

phalangion 9y ago
Even without socialization, I'd bet some girls will still like girly stuff.
- lphnull 9y ago
  males can like girly stuff too
- addicted 9y ago
  The problem isn’t that girls like “girly” stuff. The problem is that stuff is defined as “girly”.
  - Double_a_92 9y ago
    That's because boys usually don't like it...? Or do you mean that "girly" is seen as something negative?
johnm1019 9y ago
Why do men and women need to be the same? Isn't it ok to be different?
- ShaneWilton 9y ago
  It's absolutely okay to be different. In fact, everybody is different, and that's one of the big problems with trying to slot people into one of two buckets.

qq66 9y ago

My niece could really like this. She's really into "girly" stuff like princesses and flouncy dresses. Something where she programs her jewelry will be far more interesting to her than something where she programs a race car.

adamkaz 9y ago

I'm all for making it more appealing for everyone to learn to code, but I was torn over this product by a comment made by Sara Chipps on the Giant Robots podcast (http://giantrobots.fm/246 http://giantrobots.fm/246). One of the use cases she mentions is "...4 buzzes means the guy you like is nearby...".

marktangotango 9y ago
> Learn to code->it will help you get a guy. I don't think I reasonable person would get this from the quote you posted. Does it even appear in any of the material on the site? Or was it an off the cuff example in an interview? Regardless, I'm unclear on why this is offensive, can you elaborate?
- adamkaz 9y ago
  I guess the simplification I drew may not apply to everyone (edited). The off the cuff example given in the interview seemed to reinforce the idea that middleschool girls should be worried about guys and that didn't seem very empowering to me.
  - dguaraglia 9y ago
    I understand where you are coming from and I appreciate the thought, but - if you think about it from a teenager's perspective - it's a very relatable example. Teens will be teens, and they will communicate about that kind of stuff no matter what. If I had daughters, I'd be really proud if they programmed their own little protocol rather than just sending paper notes back and forth :)

jmnicholson 9y ago

Super admirable goal and super tough task. Kudos on the progress!

ChrisRR 9y ago

There was a great episode on on Jewelbots on the Embedded.fm podcast which is worth a listen. In fact the podcast is worth a listen in general http://embedded.fm/episodes/173 http://embedded.fm/episodes/173

danra 9y ago

CppCast episode: http://cppcast.com/2017/04/sara-chipps/ http://cppcast.com/2017/04/sara-chipps/

snarfy 9y ago

You have got to get that price down. $69. You can get a 3G android smartwatch phone for $65 [1]. [1] https://www.gearbest.com/smart-watch-phone/pp_507114.html https://www.gearbest.com/smart-watch-phone/pp_507114.html

bambax 9y ago

Funny how the conversation seems to hover around gender. Who cares? I have children of both genders (2 boys, 1 girl) and they really like the same things. The girl is a little more outdoorsy and the boys like screens more, it seems, but I don't esp. attribute that to gender, more to their personal inclination. All three love roller skating, and cooking, and yelling, and also, making houses with blankets and pillows. Anyway, one point the FAQ doesn't seem to cover is how is this thing powered and how long does a charge last? Can it beep and hum and do the things it does, for at least a full day?

sarajo 9y ago
Thanks for your feedback! Adding today.

misterHN 9y ago

friendship bracelets are made, and the raw materials are strips of flexible plastic

iceManChild 9y ago

This sound like the idea laid out in the book PopCo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PopCo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PopCo). It is a good read.