Fin Robotics, a startup from Kerala, has taken India into the global wearables market with Neyya ring, the device formerly known as Fin. Fin was announced at the January 2014 CES show. Then it was to be an optical device that could turn your hand into a tap-and-swipe interface. With crowdfunding and mentoring by the Startup Village in Kochi, as well as interest from technology investor Keyur Patel, Fin transmuted into Neyya.
Neyya is a Bluetooth-based ring that can control other devices, such as your TV, smartphone, and laptop, with a tap or a swipe. It runs off a lithium ion battery, and gets around 10d ays on standby and three in regular use. The somewhat chunky, but not wholly unattractive, ring has a touchpad face, so you connect to other devices and answer your smartphone, and control iTunes.
The philosophy behind Neyya is simplifying interactions among multiple devices. Unlike other “smart rings,” Neyya seamlessly integrates with iOS or OS X devices, Windows laptops, GoPro, and Roku.
The rings come in three sizes and are available in titanium or gold finish and area available at the usual outlets for about $139 to $170. (Selfridge’s prices are higher, of course, and Amazon’s are slightly lower.) If you wonder about margins in this business, Indian newspapers note that Fin Robotics will receive $69 for each ring sold.
“The ring is now recommended as such that you’re wearing it on your index finger, with your thumb controlling the smart surface,” said company president Sonia Hunt. “It makes sense from a tap and swipe perspective when you’re using your thumb on that smart surface.”
Let’s just take a minute and try that, OK? Maybe it’s just us, but seems as if the process would be easier using both hands. Still, Neyya will take less time than trying to find your smartphone when a call comes in.