sticknfind
Latest
StickNFind reveals its vision for the future of retail
Those little StickNFind Bluetooth stickers are back for another CES, and this time out, they've got even grander ambitions than helping your locate your lost keys. Founder Jimmy Buchheim swung by our CES stage this week to show off plans for retail applications. The idea is pretty simple, really: Put the company's Beacon offerings all over your retail location, and you can tell who's looking at what and for how long. How's that for targeted marketing? The store can create an app with a map, which will help the shopper locate specific items in the store and, naturally, serve up coupons and such based on tracked shopping habits. The company is showing off a slew of different-sized Beacons (as you can see in the palm of my hand above), with ranges up to 0.6 mile and batteries that last as long as nine years. Buchheim told us that the company is talking with retail partners with regards to rollouts, but wouldn't spill the beans about who might be interested.
StickNFind launches SDK, lets coders harness its Bluetooth stickers
When StickNFind burst onto the scene at the start of the year, the company promised that an SDK wouldn't be too far behind. True to the company's word, the toolbox has arrived, enabling developers to turn the Bluetooth location stickers into museum triggers, track conference attendees, or even turn the small discs into rudimentary pagers. The software's now available on the StickNFind website, while interested parties can dip their head below the break to learn a little more.
StickNFind Bluetooth tracking stickers to ship next week, get extended range
StickNFind managed to raise a grand total of $931,970 through IndieGoGo since we first caught up with it, and now it's set to start shipping next week. In case your memory requires a bit of jogging, the quarter-sized disc can help you hunt down whatever it's attached to thanks to a smartphone app that keeps tabs on its distance via Bluetooth. Mobile World Congress also brings news that the miniature homing tags have gotten a redesigned companion application, an extended range of up to 150 feet (ratcheted up by 50) and a tracking accuracy of within two inches. StickNFind is being geared up for an arrival on retail shelves this April, but there's still no word regarding which shops will carry it.
StickNFind Bluetooth stickers let you tag and locate your goods with a smartphone (hands-on video)
We've all misplaced keys, gadgets and occasionally even children. Well, no more. StickNFind is a nifty, inexpensive solution for tagging and locating electronics, keys and pets. For roughly $25 a pop (estimated retail), you get a small adhesive disk that can be affixed to any flat surface or attached to a keychain. Inside, there's a replaceable CR2016 watch battery that's said to last more than a year, a Bluetooth module and antenna, an LED-lit ring and a piezoelectric speaker. A free Android or iOS app then lets you hone in on any stickers within a roughly 100-foot (line of sight) range. The current version can only display distance, but an update, set to hit before StickNFind ships, will add direction, leading you directly to your target. You can also activate a (fairly faint) beeper, and an LED ring around the perimeter of the sticker, further helping you to find the device, even in a dark room. The app will offer several other features, including a "Virtual Leash" that alerts you when the sticker goes out of range -- a "Reverse Virtual Leash" will make the device (perhaps attached to your keys) beep, letting you know you've left your smartphone behind. The product designers will also be offering an SDK, so developers can even create their own apps for StickNFind. For example, you could write an app that uses the stickers as triggers -- apparently one museum plans to affix the device to art, so as visitors approach, a text notification will pop up describing the piece. Another company is considering using stickers at an upcoming conference, and with Bluetooth transmitters placed around a venue, they can track the precise location of attendee badges (and the individuals wearing them), and even send "pages" by triggering the beeper and light. During our hands-on, StickNFind worked quite well, though as we mentioned, the current alpha version of the app only displays distance, not direction. The device is currently available for "pre-order" on Indiegogo, with an estimated March ship date. You can snag a sneak peek of it in action though, in our hands-on video after the break.
