Computer hardware has changed quite a bit in the three decades since Puma introduced its original RS-Computer running shoe. The relaunched version carries over a distinctly retro aesthetic, but replaces a connector cable with a Bluetooth connection along with a few other choice upgrades to equip the wearable for the internet age.
There was a time when Puma's original RS-Computer shoe, with its chip built not-so-discreetly into the heel, may well have been the only way to track your key fitness metrics. These days there is no shortage of wearables you could employ to do the job, and even a growing host of edgy smart sneakers, but will they bring you the same vintage-inspired street cred?
Instead of plugging a 16-pin cable into the heel of the sneaker at one end and a Commodore 64 at the other, the refreshed version can communicate running time, distance and calories spent to iOS and Android phones over Bluetooth. In another nod to its retro-past, the dedicated smartphone app will present this data through 8-bit graphics, and even features an 8-bit game.
Also packed into the rebooted running boots is a three-axis accelerometer to gather the key metrics mentioned above, onboard memory to store 30 days of data and a built-in battery to power it all, rechargeable via USB.
The tech has been updated inside but the outside remains much the same, with the new RS-Computer shoes running the same Lunar Rock-Limestone-Peacot colorway of the originals. They'll be produced in very small numbers, 86 in all, with sales kicking off at Puma stores in Tokyo, London and Berlin, as well as online, from tomorrow.
Source: Puma
