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Bayer Didget blood glucose monitoring system does double-duty as a DS game
Until we reach the time when tattoos make checking blood glucose levels cool, we're going to need another way to keep kids with diabetes healthy. And hey, kids love videogames, right? Bayer's Didget is based on the company's Contour glucose meter, but instead of connecting by USB it's shaped like a Game Boy cartridge, enabling it to slot into a Nintendo DS or DS Lite. When kids upload their scores to a custom game (the less than thrilling sounding Knock 'Em Downs: World Fair) they'll unlock new characters and items, but there's one fatal flaw in this plan: the system necessarily isn't compatible with the DSi (or its XL brother) and we're guessing the big cartridge slot isn't due for a comeback in the 3DS. In other words, this meter is on a fast-track to obsolescence.
Bayer's 'Didget' turns diabetes testing into a game
We can only imagine how difficult and frustrating it must be for a young person diagnosed with diabetes to get into the regular routine of testing their blood glucose level. In an attempt to make this process easier, and to "help build good monitoring habits," Bayer has created the Didget meter, a glucose-measuring device which can connect to an accompanying Nintendo DS game, unlocking in-game rewards for players who test regularly. You can check out a number of demos for the device and the game, titled Knock 'Em Downs: World's Fair, on Bayer's site. It's currently only available in the U.K. and Ireland for £29.99, and it only works on the original DS and the DS Lite, thanks to the DSi's tragically absent Game Boy Advance cartridge slot.
