Smart luggage new trend in travel industry
By Jane L. Lever, New York Times
It wasn’t long ago that the main selling point of a piece of luggage was its durability — think American Tourister and its rather excitable gorilla.
Not for Kevin Harwood.
Like many travelers today, he is looking for technology to go along with durability. He stumbled across a carry-on bag controlled by smartphone — with a Bluetooth-enabled lock, GPS tracking and a USB port for recharging a device. It has a built-in scale, too.
“I’m a little bit of a geek, always looking for products that extend from my phone, that connect my world and me,” said Harwood, a 30-year-old software developer from Austin, Texas.
Why should luggage be any different?
At the crowdfunding site Indiegogo he was among the first to buy into a start-up called Bluesmart that is developing a connected bag. Harwood has plenty of company. Bluesmart raised more than $2 million from more than 10,000 backers, far surpassing its goal.
Bluesmart, which expects to deliver its first bags in October, is part of what has become a stampede of businesses — both start-up and established — into the nascent connected luggage industry.