Could it be a big hit -- or a gadget warehouse contender?

In order to get an accurate heart rate you usually have to wear a chest strap, a bulky armband and/or a special wristwatch where you hold contact buttons. Liz Dickinson set out to change all that, and she did it with a very successful Kickstarter project. She’s the creator of the MIO watch, a company she started in the late 1990’s. MIO has many exercise watches in the marketplace, but this is their first to accurately measure heart rate with a high tech, strap-free device. Liz worked with Philips Electronics to create Alpha, a continuous-heart-rate monitor watch. At CES she told me it can measure EKG performance accurately at speeds of up to 12 miles per hour. The Alpha also tells time, has a timer, and gives visual and audio alerts to tell you when you’re in, or out of heart-rate zones. There’s no backlight, but if you’re running in the dark, an LED can tell you if you’re below your target zone, (blue LED), above it, (red LED) or in the zone,  (what else – a glowing green LED). Cost is $199.99

http://www.alphaheartrate.com/#alpha

See or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/giz1399

The Wimm Watch is from CES 2012. It's not around any longer. Here's the info from January of 2012.

Leo & I both love watches. I especially like watches that do more than tell time. So when a PR contact asked if I’d like to try the WIMM One Android watch during CES, I said YES! It’s big, but I’m used to big watches. And besides since complicated watches display a lot of stuff, bigger is easier to read. The WIMM One does a lot. It connects to the web via WiFi, it connects to your cell phone via Bluetooth, and it has a bunch of built-in apps. There's weather, a stop watch, world time, and a CES app that will show events that are coming up and CES headline news. It’s not for sale in retail channels yet, but you can buy a WIMM One developer kit right now. WIMM is interested in getting people interested in writing apps for the watch. The WIMM One module snaps into a rubber watchband that’s included in the kit. It kind of looks like you’re wearing an iPod Nano. Unless you decide to buy an accessory that lets you carry the watch a different way, once you snap it in the provided band, it can stay mounted forever. To charge the watch, just lay it in the charging cradle, which holds it in place via magnetic force. The cradle connects to your PC via an included micro USB cable. An AC adapter is also included. The small, inch and quarter reflective color touch screen is easy to see outdoors. And there’s a backlight if you need it. You scroll through apps by flicking right to left and then up and down for various options. There’s even a Starbuck’s app, which you can use to pay for coffee at Starbucks with having to dig out your wallet. With Bluetooth & WiFi enabled, you’ll have to charge the WIMM One daily. I like being able to see who’s calling without taking out my cell phone. The caller info shows up on the watch face and gives you the opportunity to send the call to voice mail if you don’t feel like digging around to find your phone. $299 includes the module, strap, and charger.

www.wimm.com

See or hear this January 2012 Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1348