There seems to have been an endless stream of ‘smart’ cycling gadgets over the past couple of years, especially since the advent of crowdfunding websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo making it easier to find willing funders.
The latest is the Wink Bar. It’s two small lights that can be fitted to any handlebar to provide turn-by-turn navigation, GPS tracking and illuminate the way ahead.
“We created the Wink Bar to give cyclists the ability to make their bike rides safer and smarter. Rather than something you have to attach to your bike, we wanted to make it an integrated part of the bike’s design. That way, the alarm is always protecting your bike, our inbuilt navigation tool, VelcoNav, is always there to guide you, and the headlights are there to keep you safe on the road. We’re so pleased to finally be launching the Wink Bar, and see it revolutionise the way riders from around the world cycle,” said Johnny Smith, CMO at Velco, the company behind the Wink Bar.
The Wink Bar connects to any compatible smartphone using Bluetooth and the partner app can be used to plot routes, with the lights flashing to indicate upcoming turns and junctions. The app can also suggest the most convenient routes and track your activity.
Other ‘smart’ features include the ability for the lights to flash when you’ve got an incoming phone call or receive a text message. It has the added option of serving as an anti-theft device with an alarm and can also allow you to track down the location of your bike if the alarm doesn’t deter the thief.
As well as all that, the Wink Bar also serves as two powerful 225-lumen lights, and the brightness automatically adjusts to the light conditions.
The Wink Bar can be fitted to most handlebars and adds just 200g of weight, and the 1800mAh Lithium Ion battery lasts a claimed three weeks.
So what do you think? Does the Wink Bar appeal to you? Are we becoming jaded to crowdfunded smart cycling gadgets?
If you like the sound of the Wink Bar, you can pledge $149 to get a super early bird discount, a 44% discount on the $264 retail price. Shipping is anywhere in the world and delivery is scheduled for September 2017. Take a closer look here www.indiegogo.com
10 thoughts on “Wink Bar connected handlebar lights offer turn-by-turn navigation”
FACEPALM…
we need more!!! useless gadgets that made blink navigation…
Smarthalo, Schwinn CycleNav, Hammerhead Navi, SmrtGRiPS, Haiku… etc
Why useless? cos u can activate any navi app on smartphone, use your one ear for voice instructions and go… And most of blinkings have only one function – blinkig … no bike compspidometer , no front light… So i need have +1 device on stem …. oh. Im quit.
What’s the blinkin’ point of
What’s the blinkin’ point of this? Sorry its a no from me, I’m out.
Anyone coming down The Wink
Anyone coming down The Wink Bar tonight?
what a waste of time!
what a waste of time!
how r u meant to know what all the flashes mean??
hari11 wrote:
Presumably an independent flash of each light refers to a turn in that direction. Simultaneous flashing of both would refer to incoming call/message.
Hmmm…more crowdfunded
Hmmm…more crowdfunded useless cycle gear…roll up, roll up – your pound notes and burn them 🙂
No thanks, the beauty of
No thanks, the beauty of cycling is its simplicity.
I just don’t get it….
Why do these companies think that there are hordes of lost cyclists everywhere?
Is ‘Wink Bar’ a typo?
Is ‘Wink Bar’ a typo?
What a load of shit…
The problem with these sort
The problem with these sort of things is how long before the required turn will it flash?. On a Garmin (other GPS navigation devices are available) the unit beeps to tell you that your turn is coming in a specific distance and the name of the road you’re turning into, it then beeps again as you approach the turn to reinforce the fact that you’ve got a turn coming.
If you’re using this device and riding along a road that has many joining roads and the thing flashes…does that mean turn into the very next road, if so how far in advance of the turn would it flash?. I can’t see how it can realistically be used at any speed as you would be constantly hard breaking to scrub off speed to make the turn.