Anxiety and depression are on the rise in the United States, perhaps driven by the global trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic, but also by the faster pace of modern daily life. I can’t think of it. So when I was approached to try out the Apollo wearable, a wearable device that claims to lower stress levels, increase meditative states, and improve focus and sleep quality, I jumped at the chance.
How is this done? Literally, good vibrations! Apollo claims it can work on your nervous system through vibrations, giving you long, slow vibrations to soothe you to sleep, or short, quick buzzes to help you focus and get things done.I’ve played a lot cyberpunk 2077So, needless to say, I wanted to try it out.
I’ve been trying out the Apollo for a few weeks now, and to be honest, I’m no longer sure if the device will work or not. However, we still learned some valuable lessons about wearable technology.
it’s not the most comfortable
The Apollo itself is a block of black plastic with two teal-colored buttons on the side that are used to control the “vibes.” The strap runs through a metal bracket on the top, and there’s a micro USB charging port at the bottom. Really, that’s it.Apollo isn’t much to see, but that’s okay because it’s not meaning To be seen. But it’s big and thick. It’s much thicker than any smartwatch I’ve used, and even the heavier Polar Vantage V looks slender in comparison. I understand that it would be a pain to wear it like a watch, but thankfully it’s not actually attached to your wrist. Although you can attach Apollo to your wrist using a strap, it is actually designed to be worn around your ankle.
Although that would certainly be more appropriate, I couldn’t help but compare it to the electronic tags worn by people on bail or on probation. In fact, on sleepover day at daycare, I noticed that the other parents noticed Apollo under the hem of my pants and obviously suspected I was in the wrong. It’s probably not the best thing that your mental wellness device could be mistaken for an electronic ankle tag, so I rather sheepishly removed it before anyone else found out.
I didn’t mind taking it off though. It’s not comfortable having the hard plastic pressed against your skin, and while it was fine for a while, after a few days of near-continuous wear, the Apollo’s lower area became red and itchy. When I replaced my ankle, the skin on that side started reacting as well. This device fits the ankle better, but the strap is also very short. I’m on the small side, but the straps seemed to be able to barely contain the raw, animalistic forces on my ankles. I found Apollo lying on the floor of my house so many times that I was understandably a little nervous about taking him outside.
But enough about how it feels.is that so work?
Uncertain results cost a lot of money
yes. But that’s not the case. Apollo, yes, “worked” in the sense of vibrating. Apollo works in conjunction with a companion app on your phone. When you select Vibe from the Apollo app, that command is sent to Apollo to trigger a specific set of vibrations.
So far, so good. Vibration: Please check. Reduced anxiety? Well, I really don’t understand. For the first few days, my anxiety levels suddenly spiked when the anxiety started. Because something started vibrating in my leg. I don’t live in a country where there are any particularly dangerous animals, except for the grumpy badger. something unexpected Sudden foot vibration is generally a bad thing. In more modern times, sustained vibrations can also signal a phone call, which, strangely, causes even more anxiety than the possibility of being attacked by an animal. But after climbing that particular hill, I was struck by the idea that I had no idea if they were working or not. Was I more focused, relaxed, or awake? Have no idea.
You can send vibes according to the timetable set within the app. Get Recover Vibes in the morning, Focus Vibes while you’re at work, Unwind Vibes while getting ready for bed, and more. But sometimes Apollo decided to take a vacation and threw the timetable out the window. It was completely unreliable and after a while I found myself not following the schedule at all and skipping entire sessions for no reason. Sometimes it would start, but it would just remind me that I didn’t feel anything for the rest of the day.
What was strange was that the app was aware of the missing session. The app kept track of daily usage totals and clearly only showed sessions started. In the screenshot above, you can see that it only tracked 30 minutes, even though it had been scheduled for almost 2 hours up to that point. The schedule didn’t go as planned, so Do you know the app? I have no idea how this got past QA, but it did.
Some of the missed sessions were due to another major shortcoming of the device: battery life. Battery life isn’t terrible and usually lasts several days on a single charge. However, there was no way to know how much battery life was left on Apollo other than manually connecting the device to the app. As a result, I spent a very long time with a completely dead Apollo strapped to his ankles.
Just a device that requires power
I haven’t worn the Apollo for a while, and I haven’t noticed any changes in my anxiety, fatigue, or concentration levels. It’s true that there may have been a change, but it’s not something that can be quantified, so it’s hard to recommend the Apollo wearable as a product. Granted, it’s not priced at $350. This is not so expensive that you should give it up just because it might work. I appreciate the idea behind Apollo, but even though it’s gone from my life, it wasn’t nostalgic for me.
And that, in fact, is the crux of the problem with Apollo, or any new wearable device for that matter. In a world where we’re always juggling smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, e-readers, and laptops, each with their own demands and needs for power, adding another power-hungry electronic device can be a challenge. . For me to add it to my daily effects, Apollo had to really prove itself and prove itself worthy of being added to my charge pile. To be honest, it wasn’t.
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