Tracking

Though most smartwatches will offer analog-looking faces, companies like Withings have been offering a mix of both worlds for a number of years. Now the company has launched its latest flagship hybrid health tracker in the shape of the ScanWatch 2.

QR codes are everywhere nowadays, but they don’t have to be. MIT scientists have developed an invisible tagging system called BrightMarker, which embeds fluorescent tags into objects that can be viewed and tracked through an infrared camera.

Exactly 10 years ago, Omate launched a funding campaign on Kickstarter for a standalone smartwatch called the TrueSmart. Now the company has launched the second generation, this time as a Wearable-as-a-Service platform for seniors and lone workers.

With grim predictions that all polar bears may be wiped out by the end of the century, it’s vital scientists find a way to better monitor the beasts to see if conservation efforts are having any impact. So they decided to 'fingerprint' them using DNA.

Amazfit has announced its latest wallet-friendly smartwatch, with the Bip 5 reportedly boasting the company's largest screen on a globally available product. The wearable also runs the health-focused Zepp OS platform – a first for the series.

Late last year, Sony launched a mobile motion-capture system in Japan that worked with a companion app to create a VR avatar for such things as gaming or chat. Now the Mocopi system is up for pre-order in the US.

GPS-enabled tracking collars allow scientists to learn a lot about wild animals, but the devices do have one major drawback – limited battery life. A new tracker gets around that limitation, as it's continuously powered by the animal's movements.

Zepp Health-owned budget-friendly wearable brand Amazfit has launched a thin and light round smartwatch with a 14-day battery, the ability to tap into five satellite systems, more than 120 sports modes, and a bunch of health tracking features.

Researchers have developed a platform that allows wireless ingestible devices to be tracked in 3D as they travel through the gut, which may provide a cheaper, less invasive way of investigating disorders that affect gastric motility.

The majority of shark species are threatened with extinction, so it's crucial to protect the "pupping" areas where females give birth to live young. A new satellite-linked device, known as the BAT, lets scientists know the locations of those areas.

In order to better understand how mosquitoes spread diseases such as malaria, it's important to know how far they range within a given region. A new technique could help scientists do so, and it involves feeding the insects DNA.

GPS has its limitations in urban areas where signals can get noisy. Now, engineers in the Netherlands have developed “SuperGPS” – a hybrid positioning system that combines wireless and optical connections to pinpoint locations within centimeters.