Netflix Smart Socks Sense When You're A Little Too Chill And Fall Asleep, Pause Your Show
Typically when you hear of someone wearing an electronic device around their ankle, your first thought may they made a bad decision that led to house arrest. You may not have considered many other scenarios, though Netflix did, and so the concept for Netflix Socks was born. Will it spread? That may be up to you and your sleep habits.
We've all been there, fighting off sleep like a grumpy child, only we're doing it because we're trying to power through yet another episode of Orange is the New Black or catching up on Breaking Bad (both are awesome shows, by the way). Eventually we succumb to our inevitable fate, drifting off into la-la land while Netflix continues playing in the background.
What stinks the most is trying to figure out where in an episode you lost consciousness. It's a first world problem, granted, but it's one every Netflix subscribers has gone through. And that, folks, is why Netflix concocted this crazy DIY socks project.
"Sometimes a show is so good, you just can’t stop. And the next thing you know, zzzzz. Netflix socks detect when you’ve dozed off and send a signal to your TV, automatically pausing your show. Never again will you binge-watch yourself to sleep, only to wake up two seasons later wondering what happened," Netflix explains.
For best results, don't take any shortcuts. Netflix suggests knitting your own pair of socks. Yes, seriously. Netflix even provides a bunch of fun patterns to choose from that are based on popular original shows.
In addition to knowing how to knit, you'll need to learn or brush up on your programming skills. The brains of this operation is an Arduino microcontroller connected to an accelerometer, IR LEDs, and an LED indicator light.
The idea is that when you fall asleep, your sock will notice the lack of movement and send an IR signal to pause or stop Netflix. The indicator LED will light up before that happens, giving you time to wiggle your foot to prevent any interruption if you're still awake.
Crazy? Yes, as was Netflix's previous concoction, The Switch, which was a button that dimmed the lights, silenced your phone, ordered food, and started streaming. Brilliant as well? That's up for debate, but we have to admit it's at least clever.
We've all been there, fighting off sleep like a grumpy child, only we're doing it because we're trying to power through yet another episode of Orange is the New Black or catching up on Breaking Bad (both are awesome shows, by the way). Eventually we succumb to our inevitable fate, drifting off into la-la land while Netflix continues playing in the background.
What stinks the most is trying to figure out where in an episode you lost consciousness. It's a first world problem, granted, but it's one every Netflix subscribers has gone through. And that, folks, is why Netflix concocted this crazy DIY socks project.
"Sometimes a show is so good, you just can’t stop. And the next thing you know, zzzzz. Netflix socks detect when you’ve dozed off and send a signal to your TV, automatically pausing your show. Never again will you binge-watch yourself to sleep, only to wake up two seasons later wondering what happened," Netflix explains.
For best results, don't take any shortcuts. Netflix suggests knitting your own pair of socks. Yes, seriously. Netflix even provides a bunch of fun patterns to choose from that are based on popular original shows.
In addition to knowing how to knit, you'll need to learn or brush up on your programming skills. The brains of this operation is an Arduino microcontroller connected to an accelerometer, IR LEDs, and an LED indicator light.
The idea is that when you fall asleep, your sock will notice the lack of movement and send an IR signal to pause or stop Netflix. The indicator LED will light up before that happens, giving you time to wiggle your foot to prevent any interruption if you're still awake.
Crazy? Yes, as was Netflix's previous concoction, The Switch, which was a button that dimmed the lights, silenced your phone, ordered food, and started streaming. Brilliant as well? That's up for debate, but we have to admit it's at least clever.
