MYLE TAP is the world’s first wearable thought catcher

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This touch-activated, voice-powered wearable automatically converts your thoughts into actions.

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Did you know that the average person generates over 70,000 thoughts each day? Many of which are forgotten. Let’s face it, we’ve all been there: a great idea pops into your head while in the shower, in the car or out for a jog, only to find that by the time you grab a pen and paper, that million dollar concept or simple to-do is out of mind. What if there was a device that could easily capture that thought in a matter of seconds and then automatically convert it into action?

That’s the idea behind the latest innovation from one Calgary-based startup who has devised what they’re calling the “first wearable thought catcher.” As its slogan would imply, the MYLE TAP is a super stylish, touch-activated wearable voice recorder that instantly registers and analyzes spoken words, then sends them to one of many commonly used mobile apps. This can be everything from writing a Facebook message to a friend to jotting down an appointment in the calendar while driving or sharing a memo to a colleague in Evernote.

In addition to dozens of integrated program already available, MYLE TAP also features several applications of its own, including those that can help keep tabs on groceries, manage personal budgets, count calories and even control IoT systems. What’s more, it understands 42 languages.

Based on an Atmel | SMART SAM4S MCU, the super compact and lightweight gadget is equipped with an accelerometer, a Bluetooth Low Energy module, a few LEDs and a built-in battery capable of running up to a week on a single charge. MYLE TAP boasts some impressive memory as well, with a storage capacity of up to 2,000 voice notes.

As for its software, the MYLE TAP is compatible with both iOS and Android devices, along with countless apps already installed on a majority of today’s smartphone and tablets. Beyond that, the startup’s SDK/API enables users to develop their own programs.

So whether you’re a businessman, a stay-at-home mom, a fitness buff or a marketing guru with a constant stream of ideas, this wearable thought catcher may be for you. If so, head over to MYLE TAP’s Indiegogo campaign where the team is currently seeking $50,000. Shipment is expected to begin later this year.

TomTom Runner teardown reveals ATSAM4S8C inside

Back at Maker Faire Bay Area in May, the iFixit team took a deeper dive into the technology that is powering some of today’s sports watches, like the TomTom Runner. During its teardown, the iFixit team revealed that the wearable device was powered by an Atmel ATSAM4S8C.

The popular GPS sports watch is equipped with a built-in heart rate monitor, a large monochrome LCD display and one-button control. In addition, the TomTom Runner is embedded with an accelerometer and sensors allowing it to work both outdoors, indoors and even on a treadmill, thus providing providing a user with the kind of data they’d expect to find on most sports watches — such as distance, pace, stride length, calories burned and lap times all in real-time. Bluetooth Smart support also enables a user to sync the Runner with other devices, including a heart rate strap.

Based on ARM’s powerful Cortex-M4 core, the Atmel | SMART SAM4S lineup offers increased performance and power efficiency, higher memory densities (up to 2MB of Flash and 160KB of SRAM), along with an extensive peripheral set for connectivity, system control and analog interfacing. The SAM4S operates at 120MHz and integrates Atmel’s Flash read accelerator, along with optional cache memory to increase system performance. The SAM4S also features a multi-layer bus matrix, multi-channel direct memory access (DMA) and distributed memory to support high data rate communication.

So, how low is low in terms of power consumption? Well, the Atmel | SMART SAM4S family manages to achieve 200µA/MHz in dynamic mode at a low operating frequency; 30mA at 120MHz; and 1µA at 1.8V in back-up mode with the real-time clock (RTC) running. In short, it offers some of the best power consumption/performance rates on the market for standby mode, achieving 120MHz+ operating frequency with a RAM retention mode below 25µA.

On the security side, the SAM4S prevents unauthorized access to on-chip memory, supports secure device reconditioning (chip erase) for reprogramming – while a 128-bit ID and scrambled external bus interface ensures software confidentiality as the hardware cyclic redundancy check (CRC) checks memory integrity. And last, but certainly not least, fitting a device with a SAM4S means easy access to Atmel Studio 6, which offers hundreds of ARM project examples with source code to streamline the design process.

Joining a number of other watchmakers, TomTom Runner is the latest device to feature an Atmel | SMART SAM4S microcontroller. If you recall, Secret Labs announced last year that their AGENT smartwatch was powered by both the SAM4S and tinyAVR microcontrollers.

For those interested in learning more, Atmel engineers have recently published 28 application notes for the company’s comprehensive Atmel | SMART SAM4S devices.