Shoei is now the first of the mainstream motorcycle helmet brands to enter the smart motorcycle helmet space with their IT-HT helmet.
The number of car and motorcycle manufacturers looking to show off new connective and immersive tech is increasing year after year – to the extent that CES is starting to look more like a traditional auto show. The upshot is that, instead of countless startups littering the floor with crowd-funded projects, trusted brands are now throwing their weight behind experimental tech. Shoei is now the first of the mainstream motorcycle helmet brands to enter the smart motorcycle helmet space with their IT-HT helmet.
Shoei worked with the electronics manufacturer NS West to bring the IT-HT concept to CES, and while the helmet is merely a concept, it’s already more of a feasible production model than most of the vaporware out there. Startups like Jarvis, and Skully have long promised to bring a motorcycle helmet to market which combines connectivity, a Heads Up Display and augmented reality only to have disappointingly predictable production delays.
The Shoei IT-HT, on the other hand, is considerably lighter on tech compared to the promised helmets from Jarvish and Skully — the HUD feature is the only technology offered. Granted, you can easily fit any helmet with a Nuviz, but the Shoei is the first to have the technology fully integrated.
The simplicity of the technology might be the key to its success, however. Instead of making pie-in-the-sky promises and failing to deliver, Shoie is showing off a helmet that, by the looks of it, is all but ready to hit shelves. It’s possible that the IT-HT could be just a hint of what Shoei has in development and it doesn’t want to show its full hand just yet. At the very least, this shows Shoei is considering and investing in technology, and already significantly more than any brand a fraction of its size.
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