eyeexam
Latest
ICYMI: Eye exams go DIY and smartfeeding your pets
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A new device can calculate people's eyeglass prescriptions without needing to see an optometrist, though whether that's actually responsible or not is up to you. Meanwhile a cloud-connected smart petfeeder that suffered from downed servers had to send a notice to owners to feed their pets manually, since the machines lost all connection and didn't release food. There's a lot to talk about this week but we recommend reading up on NOAA's three month weather outlook, since everyone will be talking about the DNC this weekend anyway. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Warby Parker wants you to use your phone for eye exams (update)
Warby Parker, the eyewear company that sends you frames to try on before you make a purchase, has some lofty goals for the near future. In addition to plans that'll almost double its current retail footprint, the start-up has tech in the works that will save you a trip to the optometrist for an eye exam. "We think that would increase access to eye exams," co-founder Dave Gilboa told The Wall Street Journal. "It's early in the process but we are excited about the potential." Of course, besides the convenience, it'll also provide an avenue for folks who really need their eyes looked at to get some help at home.
Blink: an on-demand, smartphone-powered service for eye exams
Yes, smartphones can be fun, no doubt about it (Flappy Bird, anyone?). But there's more to them than that. Take EyeNetra, for example: this young startup has come up with a smartphone-based service that offers on-demand vision tests. With Blink, people don't have to pay a visit to the optometrist to get a routine eye exam -- it comes to them. The newly launched service isn't meant to replace any optic emergencies that may arise, however; instead, it simply provides a test to determine if someone needs prescription eyeglasses.
Peek app brings eye exams to the developing world, no attachment required
Traffic apps and email clients are all well and good, but there are few things that really highlight the world-changing potential of the smartphone as well as medical applications. People delivering access to affordable care in developing nations always serve as friendly reminder that our devices can be so much more than distracting casual gaming platforms. Eye examinations are one of the clearest applications on that front -- around three years ago, MIT's Media Lab introduced us to a $2 box that could transform handsets into a mobile eye clinic. Peek offers much of the same, albeit without the need for a (relatively) bulky add-on. Developed by members of the International Center for Eye Health, the app can conduct visual acuity, color vision tests, among several others. It also keeps a record of patients examined along with geotagged info. You can check out a nice piece on Peek in the via link below, and for more info on the app and the people behind it, peep the source link.
