AirJamz the World's Only Wristband Air Guitar...
Courtesy of James Trew
The buy-line on their KickStarter reads... "AirJamz is the wearable Air Guitar that you have to see to believe." To be fair, you probably can believe it...
If you're wondering who dreamed this up, well maybe you're familiar with Zivix, (the company best known for Jamstik, a small wireless guitar that helps you learn to shred, or play more than just axe-sounds, with your iPhone and iPad), they're the folks behind AirJams.
AirJamz is for those that want to forego the whole playing part altogether, and just pretend they're slaying. Imagine Guitar Hero boiled down into a $50 wristband with an accelerometer and an app that "plays" guitar if you strum along in time and you've basically got it.
The technology is about as simple as it is to use. The cuff looks a lot like a watch or fitness tracker, with a single button on it. Pair AirJamz with your iOS or Android device, and load up the companion app, and you're basically good to go.
Choose a song from the list on offer (no details on how many, or what songs, just yet), and strum along in time to keep the guitar part playing. You can also sound use AirJamz to trigger sound effects, and multiple users can (air) jam along together, so you can create your very own (air) band.
As for the demo at SXSW, well it made the point of it pretty clear. Four air guitar "experts" took turns to rock out in front of the well-oiled SXSW audience, giving it everything they had. Wrists shaking up and down at an intense rate, complete with exaggerated rock-star posturing. It's basically karaoke for metal-loving beer fans.
It's a little goofy, sure, but clearly just a bit of fun. The $50 price tag is low enough to make this the ideal novelty gift for that failed guitarist in your life, but you can pick it up on Kickstarter on March 29th and save yourself a little (not Johnny) cash.