Kolibree, a company dedicated to connected innovative solutions to keep you healthy and smart, today announced that their world’s first connected electric toothbrush which was launched for the first time at the International Consumer Electronics (CES) show in January, is now available for pre-orders on Kickstarter, a crowdfunding platform, that offers the ability for users to fund a project or product.
Funds raised from Kickstarter supporters will be used to manufacture and distribute Kolibree’s connected toothbrush, starting with a limited rollout in June and wide distribution worldwide starting in the U.S. and Europe in late Q3/early Q4 2014.
Unlike anything else that exists today, Kolibree’s smart, connected toothbrush has a unique technology with sensors to analyze your brushing habits and display them on a mobile dashboard you can readily access from your phone. You can learn about your brushing behavior from that data to improve your habits over time. By being armed with smart data, you can be more empowered to take better care of your teeth and make future dentist visits less painful and less expensive. Kolibree is particularly useful for parents who want to instill positive brushing habits for their kids as early as possible.
"We wanted to leverage our background and experience in hardware, connected devices and Bluetooth technology by creating a product that will help people become more empowered to take better care of themselves,” said Thomas Serval, CEO & Co-Founder of Kolibree. Loic Cessot, CPO & Co-Founder adds, “The incredibly positive response we’ve had so far, is affirmation of a product that not only transforms a behavior we do every day, but also of the growing awareness of how connected devices can help us all gain better control of issues impacting our overall health and well-being.”
The Kickstarter rewards are being offered at various funding levels. For those who want to be in the first commercial batch, the first 500 funders will be offered a Kolibree toothbrush for only $99, with a price point of $129 for the next 1,000 supporters. The toothbrush at these price points will come in Feather White and include two brush heads. Supporters who wish to receive a Kolibree toothbrush in their choice of Feather White, Dove Gray, Berry Blue or Cerise Pink can do so for only $149, which will include two brush heads. All orders will receive an induction charging station and the free mobile app, which supports both iPhone and Android smart phones.
In addition, there will be a specific offer for developers for $199 with beta API access and free support and an educational software package for dentists for only $299. Creative and fun-filled offers are available for fans wishing to support Kolibree at higher funding levels.
“While Kolibree launched in the U.S. and Kickstarter was birthed in the U.S., we have been receiving support from fans on nearly every continent, so we encourage people from around the world to support our campaign,” Serval said.
The Kickstarter campaign today, will run through May 23, 2014, has a fundraising target of $70,000.
Why A Connected Toothbrush Matters:
You may have been told that plaque and tartar build up can lead to losing your teeth if not monitored and acted upon fast enough, however many people don’t realize that poor dental care can also impact the overall care of your health. Before Kolibree, there hasn’t been an easy and quick way to monitor whether you’re doing an A job or a C one when you brush, so how can you improve a habit without any data?
Not only does Kolibree solve this problem while making it easy and fun, but it puts a serious dent in an industry that has never seen this kind of innovation. While Kolibree doesn’t make any claims that it can keep cavities or gingivitis at bay, the better you take care of your teeth, the more likely you can and will avoid serious problems.
Designed for families, the app works with several toothbrushes so the entire family can participate and all of that data can be monitored in a single profile on one phone. Kolibree rewards your progress, allocating points to kids to encourage them to improve their brushing habits. Gamification will be built into the app to keep users motivated to improve their brushing habits as well as brush for longer each time. The brushing data will also be available via an open API to let third party game designers develop new apps to add to the fun and further enhance brushing time.
Cessot adds, “The Kolibree toothbrush can transform the way people brush their teeth. Kolibree is spearheading the concept of CrowdbrushingSM; the more data we receive on people’s brushing habits, the more reliable and accurate the software is, which is a significant benefit to users and the community at large. For the first time, we’ll have usage data that will benefit us as consumers take better control of our health and to dentists who can better serve their patients.”
About Kolibree
Kolibree is a company dedicated to connected innovative digital solutions to keep you healthy and smart. Kolibree’s flagship product, the world’s first connected electric toothbrush, transforms what was once a tedious activity into a fun and creative experience. The Kolibree mobile app provides real-time feedback on your smart phone and offers built in games to keep kids (and adults) motivated to improve their brushing habits and help improve their overall health. Kolibree has offices in New York, Paris and Hong Kong. For more information, visit http://www.kolibree.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sharekolibree and on Twitter @kolibree.
