I’ve never really done the crowdfunding thing before, but a couple of months ago I fancied the idea of getting a new toy to play with. I wasn’t sure what exactly I wanted, but I knew I wanted it to be cool and quirky. Where do you find cool and quirky gadgets? Kickstarter, of course!
I visited the Kickstart website and started trawling through all the different projects and noticed the Kickstarter Staff Picks. I’ve backed a couple of other projects since this initial one, and I almost always check the staff picks first now. The Kickstarter guys really know their stuff. They highlight some very cool projects. Including the Qmote from Qblinks.
The Qmote is a kind of multi-function button which hooks up to Android and iOS devices. You pair it with your device and you can do all kinds of fun things with it. You can make your misplaced phone ring, you can silence an alarm, you can put on your LED torch and so much more. If, like me, you’re also a user of the IFTTT service, Qmote will plug directly into this and expand your automation horizons even further. With IFTTT, your only limit is your imagination, so to connect a Qmote to it and not have to actually do anything on your device itself is a very cool feature.
The Qmote comes in a couple of different colours, and they all carry a nice brushed steel look, so those of you looking for some style in your tech should be very happy with this. It’s also carries an IPX7 rating, meaning that it’s water resistant. Don’t be taking it into the bath with you though. It WILL break.
Now, although this project was successfully funded, I’ve yet to receive my Qmote. They’re going through some regulatory testing and have had to go through some additional design tweaks (the Qmote team are excellent at keeping their funders up-to-date), but I’ve got no doubt I’ll get it very soon.
As an added bonus, because I shared it on my social media, they’re giving me another one for free. Thanks, guys!
They also put together a lovely video about the device:
