Is a “Kickfarter” pun too obvious here?
(Editor’s note: Meh.)
CH4, a Bluetooth sensor that rides in your back pocket and tracks the methane emissions of your posterior, was hoping to raise $180,000 on Kickstarter. According to its creators, users would use a mobile app to record what foods they had eaten, and it would then correlate those foods with the sensor’s readings and recommend dietary changes.
Unfortunately, the Kickstarter campaign crapped out at under $4,000, but there is still a slight chance that this technology will smell the air of day: As one backer suggested when it became clear the campaign would fall short, family car manufacturers could embed the sensors in car seats.
I asked the Re/code staff to sound off on CH4 (and, in a new high bar for our maturity level, only one person responded with an onomatopoeic “pffffffffffffff”). Here’s what the rest of them said:
Elizabeth Crane
Senior Editor, Copy
Gives a whole new meaning to the term “fart app.”
But really, are we so disconnected from reality that we need an app to tell us to cut back on hard-boiled eggs?
Ina Fried
Senior Editor, Mobile
Not sure about the name. I think they should have called it “The Windbreaker.”
Liz Gannes
Senior Editor, Technology Trends and Innovation
Did you guys see that the latest NSA project exposed by Snowden documents was called “Sniff It All”? Just saying.
Arik Hesseldahl
Senior Editor, Enterprise
If this catches on, it could spark a real movement.
Amy Keyishian
Associate Editor, Copy
I like the idea of people wearing these. I’d be able to identify gassholes walking in front of me and avoid getting crop-dusted.
John Murrell
Deputy Managing Editor, News
What this needs is a directional sensor for purposes of settling arguments and assigning blame.
Ina Fried (Again)
Senior Editor, Mobile (Still)
Butting in again to say: I don’t know, John. They might run into some patent issues. We all remember the landmark case of Smeltit v. Dealtit.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
