Victoria Guzman
IS 251
ROAR for Good is a startup company
that has just released their first product, Athena, a discreet device that can
be worn as a piece of jewelry and alert loved ones when under attack. It is a
smart safety jewelry and the small circular magnetic clip is equipped with
Bluetooth and an activation button, which when pressed sends a distress signal
to selected emergency contacts through the user’s phone[1].
The company ROAR, has been investing in non-profits that teach healthy
relationships to young children. This company is committed to reducing violence
and empowering women. Not only is this company promoting safety, it is also
promoting itself through other non-profits[2].
The
consumers this product is targeted to are predominantly women, who will
definitely want to buy this product because of the assurance of safety. ROAR believes
women shouldn’t be made to change their lifestyles in order to feel safe, like
learning self-defense and carrying pepper sprays. It also has an alarm mode,
which is intended to spook an attacker and prevent things going from bad to
worse. ROAR even built a silent mode into Athena, which allows the distress
signal to be sent out without triggering the alarm. Both options can be changed
by the user. This product was funded by a crowd funding campaign and has
attracted a lot of positive interest and potential customers. If this product
is marketed well, through the use of advertisements, then this product could
reach the hands of many women.
However, this product is not
perfect. It must be held down for three seconds to activate the signal to avoid
false alarms, but a false alarm could still happen. The button also does not
directly alert 911, but alerts your emergency contacts whom can then call 911. Athena
is also not the only device available in the market, so it will definitely have
some competitors. For example, there is an App called SafeTrek, which is a personal
safety app. When in an unsafe area one can open the app and hold their thumb down
on the safe button until they reach a safe area. Once you release your thumb
you must type in your 4 digit pin, if there is an emergency you simply do not
enter your pin and the local police are notified of your location and emergency[3].
This is a great competitor for Athena because it is a free application from the
apple store and alerts the police immediately. Another problem with Athena, is
that it is $75, which is pretty expensive. The price will definitely deter some
women from buying it.
I definitely do think this product
will become popular, especially since personal safety has become a very
important and big issue. However, I think the price will definitely make
consumers look into other products that offer the same safety features. I do
like the idea of having a nice necklace that can be worn for fashion and for
safety. It does have a Bluetooth connection to one’s phone which is not a new
technology, but is a new way to use the technology. ROAR definitely has some work to do, especially
keeping up with competition.
While the idea behind this product has good intentions, it is my understanding that there are a number of alternative devices and services that carry the same basic function. I find the idea to be almost a rebranding of Life Alert, a product/service known nationwide. In addition, I don't see much use for this particular product in the information systems world. It will not assist the productivity or economic efficiency of the business just because they can call the police quicker, instead companies seem to be more concerned with accurate tracking with chips using RFID. However, I would be interested to see how ROAR is promoting this device to non-profits and just how the technology is being used for purposes other than victim prevention.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if the intentions of this product are quite impressive, however, I am concerned that the design of the current Athena has some serious concerns. The most obvious one is the false alarm signal. This product is embedded into jewelry, say for instance a necklace, and the wearer of the product is carrying something that is pressing down on their neck, his could potentially set the signal off. If the emergency contact that is notified, attempts to call the person believed to be under attack and cannot reach them, an unnecessary emergency is created, taking resources, such as police, away from places where they are truly needed. A suggestion I have for improving this problem would be to make the product fingerprint recognizable. After the device was triggered for three seconds, the user could scan their fingerprint to ensure that this was in fact, a real emergency. I feel that implementing this additional step would significantly lessen the number of emergency alert errors. A second concern I have is the fact that this product uses magnetism. So many magnets are used in day to day scenarios, that I fear coming into contact with one could damage or destroy the product's storage of emergency contacts. Along the same lines, if attackers became more aware of these devices, they could cary magnets that could purposely destroy them and counteract all that the product intended to do. Overall, I feel as if this product could be revolutionary due to the fact its unlike many of its competitors, I just think that it requires a few improvements to optimize its success.
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing what kind of technology people create these days. Athena is an impressive device. Even though it is expensive and there are substitutes for it, I found it interesting that ROAR for Good incorporated safety with fashion accessories. I think they could improve on their design by adding different color options and patterns or changing the size or shape of the product. I agree with Livia that a fingerprint scanner could lessen the amount of false alarms. They could also add a speaker, so that the emergency contact could hear out the situation. I worry that in some emergency situations, the contacts could have dead phones or their phones could be turned off, which defeats the purpose of the device.
ReplyDeleteThe idea behind discrete alert signals has become increasingly popular in reason years. Although there are many devices similar to Athena, I believe ROAR has developed a product with some features that set them apart from competitors, but also some flaws that can be worked out for future models. ROAR made some strategic business moves by marketing the product to young children and women. For young children, in today’s society, it is important for them to learn what constitutes a healthy relationship and know how to ask for help if they witness unhealthy behavior within a relationship or they are experiencing the behavior personally. Also, it allows women to be more confident in their actions and lifestyles knowing that help can be contacted with the push of a button.
ReplyDeleteInitially, the purpose of the device and how it is carried with the user is extremely efficient. Being able to wear the device is a better alternative then having it on a keychain or an app on your smartphone because it can be readily accessed by the individual under attack. ROAR can maybe change the design of the product to be a bracelet or other types of jeweler for both men and women to utilize the device. I think that having a silent mode on the device defeats the purpose of the “calling for help” concept. Also, if the user accidentally puts the silent mode on or forgets to turn it off and something happens then the alarm on the device will not sound. Maybe they can make a setting so the device indicates it is in silent mode or potentially eliminate the feature all together. Another concern I have is the fact that it does not directly call 911. If you are purchasing a device that is meant to enable to contact help if under attack why would it not notify authorities immediately? That is definitely something they should change for safety purposes in future models. Additionally, I share the concern with another comment above with how emergency contacts listed could have their phones turned off or on silent mode. Again, this is another reason by a direct 911 call should be added to the features of the devices once the signal is made.
I feel this product could be extremely popular and useful for consumers if they address some of the issues and concerns I discussed above as well as some other revamping suggestions from other commenters and users of the product.
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ReplyDeleteI think that the concept of smart jewelry is very interesting and potentially beneficial idea. The introduction of this smart jewelry falls inline with the current initiate to invest in smart wearable technology. Wearable technology has the potential to expand into it's own market because it is more closely connected to our daily lives. It helps us monitor the things that are physically happening in our lives more so than what is happening online. I believe that this product has a lot of potential to help women feel more safe, yet it has that "life alert", feeling to it. One way that I think this product could be improved is if it somehow monitored the heart rate of the individual wearing it and could accurately sense upon being triggered, if it was a false alarm or not depending on the elevated heart rate of the individual. It could help the makers of Athena to accurately differentiate between false alarms and real dangerous situations. That being said, false alarms are still bound to happen. Overall I think that this is a very interesting concept that could go far with a few more years of research and development.
ReplyDeleteI think that the concept of smart jewelry is very interesting and potentially beneficial idea. The introduction of this smart jewelry falls inline with the current initiate to invest in smart wearable technology. Wearable technology has the potential to expand into it's own market because it is more closely connected to our daily lives. It helps us monitor the things that are physically happening in our lives more so than what is happening online. I believe that this product has a lot of potential to help women feel more safe, yet it has that "life alert", feeling to it. One way that I think this product could be improved is if it somehow monitored the heart rate of the individual wearing it and could accurately sense upon being triggered, if it was a false alarm or not depending on the elevated heart rate of the individual. It could help the makers of Athena to accurately differentiate between false alarms and real dangerous situations. That being said, false alarms are still bound to happen. Overall I think that this is a very interesting concept that could go far with a few more years of research and development.
ReplyDeleteI found this blog very interesting because this is new technology that is really creative and innovative. After reading about this ROAR's competition, which I am glad you included, I think that Athena is a better device for a few reasons. One reason is that it is on all the time. When you wear jewelry, you really don't take it off till you are home, but your phone you could put down or forget at someones house that you are walking home from. The other reason is that technology can fail easily. An app on a cell phone only works if your phone has charge and is working properly. Athena eliminates some of those defects by making the device simple for the user. Very informative response and good choice of topic for your blog entry.
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