Top 13 Smart Shoes That Combine the Best of Technology and Fashion

Wearable tech has arrived and the shoe industry has taken notice; from changing colors to charging batteries, current smart shoe products represent the best in both convenience and elegance for your feet.

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13. Volvorii 12. E-Traces Ballet Shoes 11. Lechal Haptic Footwear 10. Dorothy 9. Sneakairs 8. Digitsole Smartshoes 7. ShiftWear 6. GPS Smart Insoles 5. Altra IQ powered by iFit 4. Carv 3. Lundí Smart Boots 2. Orphe 1. SolePower Source(s):

Source: John Hoey / Flickr Creative Commons.

The following 13 connected smart shoes are sure to become objects of desire for both fashionistas and technophiles alike.

13. Volvorii

Volvorii’s high heels can change color with a swipe or tap of the provided iOS/Android smartphone app. Made of leather and rubber, each pair is outfitted with a hidden circuit board that houses Bluetooth and battery components.

12. E-Traces Ballet Shoes

Source: cargocollective.com/lesiatrubat/E-TRACES-memories-of-dance.

These ballet shoes capture a dancer’s foot movements and transforms them into vibrant, multicolor digital drawings. The results can then be viewed on the accompanying smartphone app.

11. Lechal Haptic Footwear

Lechal’s interactive haptic footwear allows the visually impaired to navigate via sensations transmitted to their feet. The shoes can be used as a navigation device for the blind or a fitness tracking system for those with sight—for counting steps taken, calories burned, monitoring and remembering workout routines, and more. It can even alert wearers if they’re near a point of interest and provide more information about that place.

10. Dorothy

Designed by iStrategyLabs, Dorothy is a shoe clip and app that can text your friends with just a tap of your heels. A coat button-sized device called Ruby uses Bluetooth to connect to the accompanying smartphone app. If its accelerometer detects three rapid-fire spikes of data from the tapping of your feet, the device will triggers an action: calling a cab, alerting the police, sending your friends your current location, and more.

9. Sneakairs

Part of the Barcelona Street Project, Sneakairs use Google Maps to provide its wearers turn-by-turn directions. This smart shoe offering is similar to Lechal’s solution: vibrations in the shoes soles tell you which way to turn and when you’ve reached your destination.

8. Digitsole Smartshoes

Digitsole has developed the first connected, interactive, heated, shock absorbent shoes with automatic tightening controlled via smartphone.

7. ShiftWear

These fashionable high tops are essentially kicks decked out with curved electronic displays on their sides. Using the companion mobile app, user can light up their feet with undulating images and GIF-like looping animations, all in full HD color.

6. GPS Smart Insoles

These smart insoles were created for tracking the whereabouts of Alzheimer’s patients, individuals with autism, and athletes/veterans with traumatic brain injuries, among others.

5. Altra IQ powered by iFit

The Altra IQ’s dual shoe sensors monitor how hard you hit the ground with each step. The app provides a view of your overall impact rate as well as left-to-right balance. The live data feed comes with coaching tips that can be implemented mid-run, allowing runners to adjust their habits in real-time.

4. Carv

Carv is designed for helping skiers improve their technique while out on the slopes. Using a sensor-packed insert that sits inside the ski boot and an external clip-on sensor, the solution captures pressure and motion data and relays it back to an accompanying smartphone app. It can then provide auditory advice to listeners in real-time while on the slopes.

3. Lundí Smart Boots

Lundi enables women to keep their feet stylish and warm—even in the dead of winter. These smart boots can reach up to 100 degrees Fahrenheit with a touch of a smartphone app.

2. Orphe

Orphe’s shoes use a wireless module for connecting the wearer’s movements to preprogrammed light and sound elements. Using 9-axis motion sensors and close to 100 serially-controlled LED lights, the smart shoes can react to music and movement, and can even control musical elements.

1. SolePower

Solepower has created a power-generating shoe insert that lets users charge portable devices while they walk. The insole converts the wearer’s leg movements into electrical energy and stores it in an external battery. A 3 km/ 2 mile walk can generate enough energy for one solid smart phone charge.

In short, from dynamic and interactive footwear aesthetics to performance and location tracking, these 13 offerings offer a glimpse of things to come from the world of connected smart shoes.