City Riders and Adventurers Rejoice: The SmartHalo is Here
Bike accessories such as smartphone holders, communication, and fitness tracking all rely on this technology. Lights on your bike illuminate the road ahead and make you visible to others. Your bike is protected from theft with chains and cables. All of these things use up precious room on your bike and may be rather costly. The SmartHalo combines all of this in a single device that sits near the center of your handlebars.
SmartHalo bike system
Smart electronic bicycle accessory
- Compass
- Bike finder
- Built-in bike light
- Anti-theft security alarm
- Fitness tracker
- Visual speedometer
- Phone call and SMS notification assistant
- Turn-by-turn navigation system
What is a SmartHalo?
If you liked the idea of the Hammerhead navigational gadget that we wrote about in 5 Incredibly Cool and Useful Road Bike Gifts, you will love the SmartHalo.
From LED navigation, a touch interface, Bluetooth connection for GPS location, staunch bike security that can withstand even the toughest cities, tracking of your cycling metrics, and more, the SmartHalo is an exciting new security and fitness device for the 21st century cyclist.
Before we get into the features of the SmartHalo, let’s take a look at the specs:
Dimensions
- Height of SmartHalo: 26.5mm
- Height with Handlebar Clips: 79mm to 87mm
- Width of SmartHalo: 96.5mm
- Depth of SmartHalo: 66.5mm
Input
- Single input touch interface.
Interface
- 25 High Intensity RGB LED Lights
Phone Compatibility
- iPhone 4S and up / iOS 9 and up
- Android equipped with BLE / Android 4.4 and up
Battery
- 3.7 V 2000 mAh Li-Polymer
- 3 Weeks Autonomy (target estimate with normal usage)
Sensors
- 3-axis Accelerometer
- 3-axis Magnetometer
Handlebar Compatibility
- Fits all standard handlebars: 22.2mm, 25.4mm, and 31.8mm
Communication
- Bluetooth Smart ANT+
- Brighter light
- Screen to display stat and data
- Long battery life
- Delayed delivery time
Features
The battery that powers the SmartHalo was engineered to provide optimized and long lasting lighting and security. When it is time to recharge, you simply plug it through UBS.
Minimalist Design
This SmartHalo is a beautifully minimalist design that isn’t complicated to install or use. This device makes it easy to focus on what’s important — your ride. This design focus has resulted in a simple device that is easily secured to your bike to keep track of your bike’s location for security reasons and more practical reasons such as finding out where you parked it in the big city.
It also allows you to utilize health and fitness tracking as well as anti-theft and anti-tampering so nobody can steal your prized ride.
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The build is slick and will fit onto just about any handlebar and will work under any conditions. It is tested for all bikes, tested against the harshest weather, adapts to daylight and nighttime automatically, and has a long-lasting battery.
Hardened Security
The SmartHalo is not just another security device or road bike accessory. The SmartHalo installs permanently and is built to resist tampering even in the toughest of cities or by the most determined bike thief.
This bike defender works via SmartHalo’s internal motion sensor that makes sure that any persistent meddling with your prized road bike will trigger a loud alarm and red and white flashing LED lights– thieves will scatter like cockroaches.
The Anti-Theft locking mechanism is secured to your bike with a tamper-proof screw — only your custom key fob will unlock it!
What’s so great about this key fob is that it’s automatic. SmartHalo has an automatic deactivation because it recognizes its owner via the fob in your pocket. The system will deactivate as soon as you approach it since it is paired only with your smartphone.Your SmartHalo will only respond to your authorized devices; anyone else’s smartphone will be useless. Your unique device pairing is secure.
But what if you’re phone is dead? No problem! You simply need to tap your custom tapcode on the top surface of the SmartHalo in order to deactivate the alarm and get pedaling.
Advanced Features
SmartHalo pairs up with your Android smartphone or iPhone so you can access all of the advanced features such as:
– Finding the quickest or safest routes and bike paths via GPS and Maps
– Inputting destination on your smartphone and let the SmartHalo show you the way
– Looking at the simple LED circle interface for turn-by-turn navigation/directions directly from your handlebar
– Receiving call, text, weather notifications
Notification LED
– Intuitive light halo can also be put in a “as the crow flies” mode, which means you can choose your destination and the LED will always point in the direction of it — you can take whatever path you like and use the LED navigation as a beacon to get home.
– Reminding you where you parked your bike via map application
– Sharing your cycling data with others
– Seamlessly tracking your cycling metrics and visualizing the data in your app:
- Time
- Distance
- Average Speed
- Elevation
- Map
- Calories
Weatherproof
The SmartHalo is intended to be secured to your bike permanently, so it is weatherproof and will thrive under the elements. No matter where you cycle or park your ride, it can handle it. Rain, snow, mud, gravel, hail, you name it.
Notifications
With street noise and road vibrations, it can be difficult to know if you have received an important call or notification.
SmartHalo notifies you of:
- Incoming Calls
- SMS Text Messages
- Weather Alerts
These notifications will blink directly on your handlebar — be safe and stop pedaling when you check your notifications.
Lighting
The security of your bike and what’s on it, such as lights and accessories, is at the heart of the SmartHalo invention.
The SmartHalo LED device is secured on your bike permanently with tamper-proof screws, so you don’t have to bike in the dark again.
The SmartHalo features two, powerful white LED lights in order to see better when biking at night, and to be seen by vehicles.
Night Time Activation
The moment the sun sets, the light turns on automatically. When you are done riding, the SmartHalo light turns off by itself.
Price
The SmartHalo is surprisingly affordable and is available for pre-order at the time of this article. The SmartHalo ships out to buyers beginning on January 2017. For only $179.00, you can enjoy high quality security, navigation, and fitness tracking.
Note that you can save money by heading to the main SmartHalo website first and subscribing to the newsletter (you can do this at the bottom of the screen).
In addition, you can save money if you plan on purchasing more than one SmartHalo as a gift, for a riding partner, etc…
Final Thoughts
SmartHalo is a cool device for those who live on their bike. It might not have as many features as some of the cycling computers available, but it does have everything an urban cyclist needs using a built-in rechargeable battery with a life that’s measured in weeks, not rides or days. The design is durable and minimalistic; it operates intuitively most of the time, but can become overwhelming when multiple things are happening at once.
The SmartHalo is a great device for urban cyclists who appreciate multiple features packed into one intelligent design. If you’re looking to track your performance in its entirety, then this may not be the right device for you. However, if you use your commuter bike as your main mode of transportation and want a well-designed product with multiple features, then the SmartHalo is perfect for you!