Haiku, an urban bike computer offering navigation from your smartphone and controlled with gestures of the hand, is available to pre-order ahead of a March 2017 launch.
The computer from Paris-based startup Asphalt Lab provides you with your speed and ride time, as you’d expect, along with directions and notification of calls and messages.
Haiku uses your smartphone’s GPS capability to provide you with directions. The idea is that you input your destination into the phone before you start riding, then squirrel it away somewhere safe. The phone communicates turn by turn directions to the Haiku which displays them in a format that looks to be very clear.
You wave your hand or just your thumb in front of the touchless sensor to switch the display from navigation to ride information. The team behind the computer says it doesn’t matter whether or not you’re wearing gloves or whether it is raining.
Haiku will let you know if someone is trying to call you, and allows you to access messages and call notifications – although its inventors are at pains to point out that you can do this at a time that’s safe.
“The basic needs when riding a bike in the city are very different from on a road bike,” says Frédéric Martin, Asphalt Lab’s head of design and user experience.
“It is not about performance, it is about knowing where to go, what time it is, and whether anyone is trying to reach me. With Haiku we offer urban cyclists a simple access to this information with a dedicated and innovative user experience focused on safety and simplicity. Set a destination on your phone, connect Haiku, and you’re good to go!”
Once you attach the Haiku to a magnetic dock on your handlebar it automatically starts up and connects to your smartphone.
A Haiku Kickstarter campaign exceeded its €55,000 (£46,400) funding goal back in September (the video, above, is from the Kickstarter project). It will be available to buy for €99 (£84) in March 2017 although pre-orders are still open at €85 (£72).
For more info go to www.haiku.bike.
36 thoughts on “Haiku navigation bike computer is gesture controlled”
Haiku navigation
This is wonderful
read messages on the go
“turn left – hospital”
Sorry your honour,
Sorry your honour,
I was pondering the way,
and zen it hit me.
My joking aside
My joking aside
This does look interesting
Maybe I’ll get one
This seems like good fun
This seems like good fun
A competition, maybe?
Best one gets some schwag
dave atkinson wrote:
Not all the comments
Follow the haiku metre
Thus, disqualified?
CygnusX1 wrote:
Indisputably.
That’s a fundamental rule.
Go five-seven-five.
dave atkinson wrote:
Go five-seven-five?
The B-road in Kettering?
Haiku gets me there!
CygnusX1 wrote:
Haiku police about
counting silly bubbles
it’s a fair pop!
beezus fufoon wrote:
Contributors on
Road.cc should avoid
Non-standard meters.
All of our stories
All of our stories
Will be written as haiku
From today onwards
Mat Brett wrote:
Your last few headlines
Have been very long, almost
Epics like Homer
The wind blows rain on my
The wind blows rain on my face
I am warm inside
Because I have wet my pants
Ride at Night
Ride at Night
This would be neat
No more reading maps on the small screen
surely the headline should
surely the headline should read – “Haiku navigation bike computer is gesture controlled, quite good”
I thank you all for
I thank you all for
making me laugh out loud by
doing these Haiku
Navigation is
Navigation is
Lost art in modern world.
Now, get lost quickly.
Magnetic clip thing:
Magnetic clip thing:
compass no use to you now.
Must trust in Blue Tooth.
Cycle gadget delivers
Cycle gadget flags
New tasks out of office, now
bike tethered to work
Garmin and Haiku
Garmin and Haiku
Fight over best route for you.
Both say bridle path……….
a wave of the hand
a wave of the hand
a message from the ether
‘Watch the bloody road!’
Thank you Road CC
in counting syllables
a day is wasted.
I do love this site
I do love this site
I know I shouldn’t but I
still can’t help myself
A wave of the hand
A wave of the hand
The device registers no
thing. Oh well, that sucks.
Wave hand for message?
Wave hand for message?
Sounds like semaphore to me.
You call this progress?
I will quote Dr Cooper-Clarke
I will quote Dr Cooper-Clarke on the subject of Haiku:
To convey one’s mood
In seventeen syllables
Is very diffic
Hand gestures on road
Hand gestures on bike.
It’s all gone horribly wrong.
Misinterpreted.
I was wondering
I was wondering
if I should mention helmets
in this Hiaku thread
Emails and WhatsApps
Emails and WhatsApps
on handlebars: undesired.
Don’t think I’ll invest.
Look! A new review!
Look! A new review!
Is this product any good?
One star? I guess not
Fallen leaves on path
Fallen leaves on path
gadget says go left. you try
all is pain, autumn
Its the boss calling
Its the boss calling
A gesture should do the trick
turn left for dole queue
Hand gestures from me
Hand gestures from me
are solely directed at
bus and cab drivers
Gestures are better?
Gestures are better?
Hand signals are not better?
drivers still ignore?
Seventy two pounds?
Seventy two pounds?
For a really shit garmin?
Hipsters can rejoice
I’m afraid I can’t
I’m afraid I can’t
trust this newfangled gadget
I’ll stick with garmin
also its ugly
and takes up far too much space
on crowded cockpit
I just have to guess
what people would think as I
wave at my headset
how many dif’rent
hand gestures must I learn to
find my destination
a strange choice of name
oriental poetry
shares nothing with maps
at least this topic
wont descend into debate
on helmets’ merits
From the number of
From the number of
comments, I first thought hooray!
But nay, it’s a dud
Supplements your phone
Supplements your phone
With a much tinier phone
On your handlebars
I’d rather have maps
Than just a little arrow
In case of missed turns
I think I’ll stick with
My regular smartphone mount
Instead of this thing
(I have a Quad Lock
It’s really rather splendid
If a bit pricey)