GPS, Pikavu GPS tracker teaches kids to abandon privacy for safety
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted December 16th 2009 11:41AM
posted December 16th 2009 11:41AM
You can't put a price on your child's well-being -- but if you could, we're guessing that it'd fall a little short of the €990 (roughly $1,440) that's being charged for the Pikavu Express Locator. A child-friendly (read: gaudy) take on the Keruve GPS tracker being used to keep track of Alzheimer's patients, the package includes a water- and impact-resistant watch that locks to your kid's wrist and a 4.2-inch touchscreen base station. Four positioning systems (SBAS-GPS, indoorVision, VisionCellid and T-GSM) are employed to keep track of the little guy, and the watch itself has a battery life of up to 4.5 days. Expensive? Indeed. Worth the investment? Well, we don't know your kids -- but probably not. PR after the break.
Pikavu arrives, a locator for children consisting of a watch with GPS and a portable receiver
Pikavu is the fastest and most secure: the child is always reachable, even if it is in an area without GPS coverage
We present globally the fast and secure Pikavu express locator ( http://www.pikavu.com ), consisting of a GPS wristwatch and a portable receiver.
Often, either on the beach, park or in places with large crowds of people, children are mislead and are lost sight of by the parents. These situations cause great distress to the child and parents. With Pikavu locator, parents can locate their children before they are put in danger.
Pikavu consists of a GPS wristwatch worn by the child, and a portable receiver for the parent, that lets quickly locate the child. Wristwatch and receiver communicate directly, without limit of distance, quickly and effectively.
The GPS wristwatch is water resistant and impact resistant and comes with safety lock, so the child can't remove it, nor other people. Has an alert button that when pressed for 5 seconds, sends an alarm to the portable receiver. Thanks to its 4 positioning systems (SBAS-GPS, indoorVision, VisionCellid and T-GSM), in just 10 seconds it's possible to locate the position of the child, despite being in a place with no GPS coverage, in which case the device automatically check alternate positioning system. The Pikavu wristwatch is lightweight (weighs only 36 grams), has an attractive design for children and is available in two different colors: blue and pink. Has a battery life of 3.5 days, extendable to 4.5 days if you activate the battery-saving system.
The portable receiver has a touch screen of 4.2inch. The creative team of Pikavu is aware that, in moments of nervousness, it is essential to give parents a fast and easy to use device, equipped with an intuitive interface, this is why the receiver is specifically designed to locate the child as quickly as possible, even in places where no roads or maps are not available, for example, in a park, or on the beach: in this case, an arrow indicates the parent the right direction to move to find fastly the child. Pikavu handling is extremely simple: just press the 'locate' button in the portable receiver and the screen will display the exact position of the child wearing the wristwatch.
The portable receiver comes with wordwide maps, that are downloaded automatically when the child is located. Works with rechargeable lithium-ion battery, and charger is included in the pack.
Pikavu costs 950€ and is now on sale directly on their web http://www.pikavu.com.
About Vision Localization Systems
Vision Localization Systems, is a pioneer in the research, design and comertialization of miniaturized locators for people with high risk of wandering. In 2004, they decided to concentrate its efforts on sectors of society with serious problems that need and demand a solution. For this reason in its first stage focused on developing Keruve, familiar direct locator ( http://www.keruve.com ) specialized people with Alzheimer's. In 2009, the launch of Pikavú involves the use of this expertise to this children's location system, which was demanded by requests from hundreds of parents. Vision Localization Systems develops its own technology from a continous investigation of the needs of its customers.
Pikavu is the fastest and most secure: the child is always reachable, even if it is in an area without GPS coverage
We present globally the fast and secure Pikavu express locator ( http://www.pikavu.com ), consisting of a GPS wristwatch and a portable receiver.
Often, either on the beach, park or in places with large crowds of people, children are mislead and are lost sight of by the parents. These situations cause great distress to the child and parents. With Pikavu locator, parents can locate their children before they are put in danger.
Pikavu consists of a GPS wristwatch worn by the child, and a portable receiver for the parent, that lets quickly locate the child. Wristwatch and receiver communicate directly, without limit of distance, quickly and effectively.
The GPS wristwatch is water resistant and impact resistant and comes with safety lock, so the child can't remove it, nor other people. Has an alert button that when pressed for 5 seconds, sends an alarm to the portable receiver. Thanks to its 4 positioning systems (SBAS-GPS, indoorVision, VisionCellid and T-GSM), in just 10 seconds it's possible to locate the position of the child, despite being in a place with no GPS coverage, in which case the device automatically check alternate positioning system. The Pikavu wristwatch is lightweight (weighs only 36 grams), has an attractive design for children and is available in two different colors: blue and pink. Has a battery life of 3.5 days, extendable to 4.5 days if you activate the battery-saving system.
The portable receiver has a touch screen of 4.2inch. The creative team of Pikavu is aware that, in moments of nervousness, it is essential to give parents a fast and easy to use device, equipped with an intuitive interface, this is why the receiver is specifically designed to locate the child as quickly as possible, even in places where no roads or maps are not available, for example, in a park, or on the beach: in this case, an arrow indicates the parent the right direction to move to find fastly the child. Pikavu handling is extremely simple: just press the 'locate' button in the portable receiver and the screen will display the exact position of the child wearing the wristwatch.
The portable receiver comes with wordwide maps, that are downloaded automatically when the child is located. Works with rechargeable lithium-ion battery, and charger is included in the pack.
Pikavu costs 950€ and is now on sale directly on their web http://www.pikavu.com.
About Vision Localization Systems
Vision Localization Systems, is a pioneer in the research, design and comertialization of miniaturized locators for people with high risk of wandering. In 2004, they decided to concentrate its efforts on sectors of society with serious problems that need and demand a solution. For this reason in its first stage focused on developing Keruve, familiar direct locator ( http://www.keruve.com ) specialized people with Alzheimer's. In 2009, the launch of Pikavú involves the use of this expertise to this children's location system, which was demanded by requests from hundreds of parents. Vision Localization Systems develops its own technology from a continous investigation of the needs of its customers.
Pikavu I Choose YOU!!!!
@googleadam between the rest of available options I will also Choose Pikavu!
The safety of my children are worth that, and more.
Pikachu Digital monsters VS Pikavu
Aren't there at least half a dozen alternatives with web based mapping already out there that cost like 1/10th of this? What a rip off.
@wraith404
of course its outrageously over priced, but with a good marketing team something like this will sell faster than hotcakes to a fat kid
@Joseph L. Flatley
"Worth the investment? Well, we don't know your kids -- but probably not." - that was pretty funny!
@wraith404 lolololol sure!! anyone of us know dhgate.com .. and I would buy a GPS tracker of $100 for my bag, or my bike, or other "priced" objects ... and they may work for that applications...
But don't kid yourself, that stuff will not work for a child in the beach or other places. The specialized products that solve a niche market headache, always have a high price.
I lol'd. Kids don´t use wristwatches.
Peek at you!
Ohhh does it have a built-in mic so I can snoop on his conversations too?
@MJGAMER 1991 XBL
im sorry, i just can never fully read any of your comments, my eyes always gravitate towards your avatar.
you wouldnt uh...happen to have that in uh..higher res would you?
@earthbound loveship
No response...
God dammit! That was a response! No more response starting in 3... 2...
I see these type of child "safety" technology solutions as counter productive. Things like this will more likely end up with more children missing, lost, or injured. Why, because it enables parents to actually worry less, cause they have the piece of mind that there kid is on GPS and can be found in seconds. So the parents get distracted, then the kid wonders off or gets kidnapped. Sure you might be able to located them, but it's much better to just pay attention to them in the first place rather then strapping a tracking device on to them.
I don't know, just my thoughts.
@verruckt8
But but the cool part is finding the wild animals, ah I mean kids.
@verruckt8
Peace of mind, not piece.
But yeah, I agree.
If you think this GPS Tracking device is cool we offer 1, 5, 10 second updates world wide visit are website http://www.slgps.com
we have what you need with unlimited monthly and no contracts
how come parents interface is even more childish than the wristwatch itself?
No parent will go out with that yellow thing pairing his GPS packed phone...
Nah, I'm not really into Pokemon.
So you're gay
We are less than a year away from the first timmy-is-stuck-in-a-well-but-timmy-really-just-tossed-his-tracking-device-down-there media fiasco.
Alternatively, you could erm...supervise/look out for your kids? If they're as young as the kid in the picture, the parents should be sticking with them. If they're old enough to use a phone, they should keep one and stay in contact with their parents.
Just a thought.
@r3loaded do you have kids? At 3 or 4 years old, they get really fast. Hiding inside the clothing rack at sears becomes a great game.
You look away for a moment.....
2nd version of this product:
the perfect gift for your wife. brand new stylish watch, 80's look.
soo wrong on so many levels
this isn't a neat watch mom 'n dad gave me?
Does anyone who replied even have kids? Nobody who takes them to places stares them down and watches their every move the entire time. The kid can disappear if you lapse for as little as 15 seconds and could be picked up and hauled off by someone in about 60 seconds. Kids don't consider the consequences of sneaking off somewhere and can easily get lost.
Sure, it doesn't happen often, but it can be especially dangerous in some areas. It's just fine for the kid to get lost in some places, where they don't put themselves in danger, but a kid getting lost in downtown Chicago or LA is a big problem and not something you can prevent unless you look only at them the entire time, put them on a leash, or get some tracking device.
If you are that paranoid about where you are, then perhaps you shouldn't be taking your child there to begin with. Being a parent is a BIG responsibility. This includes watching over them and teaching them to function in society. Clearly you view it as a terrible burden.
The obvious conclusion from your sort of reasoning is that this tracking device will only make it easier to find the corpse afterwards.
You're right. 15 seconds is a long time.
@YuriTenshi
Is it seriously so lawless and perverted in the US?
@jedi Are you that clueless about how things happen in the real world? Children are curious and like to explore things that they shouldn't be. It is completely impossible to watch over them every single second when they are out of the house. They can be standing right behind you and then just leave to something they see that they want. If you are doing anything that takes more than 10 seconds you might just not notice the child leaving. "Finding a corpse" is just plain BS, kids can wonder off anywhere and still be in no immediate danger. Hell, even groups of adults get split up and lost once in a while.
@Wwhat Laws really don't have anything to do with it, children just like to explore. Random people picking up lost children for anything but trying to help them find their parents doesn't typically happen anywhere, but it does happen occasionally that one gets picked up by someone who does harm to them.
We use these for all of the research scientists in our facility, so they do not get lost.
Doesn't it mean they deserve neither?
TOTALLY AGREES @ YuriTenshi
I actually have a daughter, and yes shes old enough for a mobile phone, but in the morning shuffle out the door, it sometimes get left behind. So while I won't be getting this device in particular i am always looking for ways to keep her safe, and in the unthinkable scenario she gets lost or kidnapped I would love to have a GPS enabled way to find her ASAP.
It's not about privacy. Wait till you have kids, then see how you would do ANYTHING to keep them safe and not on a missing child poster.
I don't see how this could possibly help a child that's been kidnapped.. everyone knows that the first thing they do to a child after kidnapping is take off all their clothes.
I don't think this product is made for anti-kidnapping. Is made for those happy beach days that turn into hell because of the kid disapeared.
The 4-6 years old boys have are not easy to control (even more if you have 2 or 3). There is no perents in the face of the earth the never had a big big scare because the child dissapeared. It's not about kidnapping, it's about other dangers when this happend.
@Allbert
Track them when they get snatched by the giant under-toad.
PRIVACY?
We're worried about the PRIVACY of a CHILD?
Seriously?
Fsck off you whacko bleeding heart yankees.
@Shovel Man
British? Did you submit your DNA to the cops yet in case you ever have kids and then they got half of it on file already?
@Wwhat
lol, no, not British, very much American.
I say "yankees" specifically referring to those who live in the northern United States and slant to the left, politically.
IE, basically every writer for Engadget.
"Worth the investment?"
you doubt it?
I did not ever see other product that solves the problem like this one. I see others, but are not attached to the body. Others locate via Internet with a map that is usefull in the beach or the mountain.
Pikavú I Choose YOU!!!
@alicem, with smart phones like iPhone and Android, the Internet is immediately accessible. So, the statement about it not being worth the price (or, better put, that there are cheaper alternatives) is quite right; for the same cost, you can buy an iPhone or Android phone and a tracking device that works over the Internet and still have spent less money.
Wow. That title reminds me of all the people who support the Patriot Act out of fear. They're trying to get em younger and younger these days aren't they?
1 in 100 children is diagnosed with Autism. Autistic children tend to wander off and are not always the best at recognizing danger. In the U.S. an average family has 1.6 children. This means that 1.6% of all families in the U.S. look at this product and see a very significant and valuable use. It seems like a pretty solid market.
Comparing this to other products that require a PC, or police involvement to access the map, this seems like a nice portable alternative for a faster and more flexible response to a wandering child.
This story comes to mind. This device would have certainly saved his life.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010051826_autisticboy13m.html
Of course my perspective is different than most since I not only have two Autistic children, but one of my childhood friends was abducted by a stranger, and was luckily recovered alive.
i want one... to give to my... uhm nice
That's so GOOD ! I've two childrens : 3 and 5 years old. So they can walk... or run... And when I'm alone with them, it's so difficult to watch them at any time !!!
I've try one gps tracker... but the problem is that my children haven't always a bag and internet is so secure in a phone !! A watch with a dedicated receptor is a good idea !!
So if I've understood, I can put two watches for one receptor ? (or three... one for my wife :D )
@m4rc310, have you ever seen a watch for children ?? That's yellow/green/blue/pink/red...
You can use a mobile tracking software on your mobile phone, which is very convinient. And free, yes!!
You can find it here: http://www.eastmobiles.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=105:free-mobile-tracking-&catid=35:gps&Itemid=59