Institute For The Future

Sports/exercise use for mobile phones

Japanese carriers are coming up with ways to give phones positive

power — at least, a little of it. KDDI’s Au unit has launched a new Smart Sports

program for its customers. Its phones can now use GPS and motion

sensors to measure steps taken during the day (either in running or

walking). The devices can then calculate distance and calories burned

and keep a running record, even transmitting the data wirelessly to PCs

for further analysis. The program also has a music option that’ll pick

tunes to match the intensity of your workout.

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo is getting ready to launch cell-linked blood

pressure monitoring and even mobile-based weight checks. The goal, PC World explains, is to get hospitals and even health clubs to start linking up their own offerings with the technology.