Withings
Encyclopedia
Withings is a consumer electronics
company located in Issy les Moulineaux, France
. It was founded in June 2008 near Paris
by three executives from the technology and telecom industry: Eric Carreel, co-founder of Inventel
, and Sculpteo
, Frédéric Potter, co-founder of Cirpack
(both company were bought by Technicolor SA in 2005), and Cédric Hutchings. Withings designs Internet-connected devices and describes its products as part of the Internet of Things
.
. It also connects to various Health 2.0
services such as Google Health
and Microsoft HealthVault
as well as diet and exercise sites such as DailyBurn
. It received much coverage in the tech press for its ability to tweet
the user's weight loss. The company provides apps for accessing the scale data for Apple iOS, BlackBerry
, and Android devices.
In January 2011, Withings announced at the Consumer Electronics Show
in Las Vegas that its second product would be a blood pressure meter that connects to the iPhone
. There it also announced it will produce a baby monitor
for use with smartphones and other connected devices.
Consumer electronics
Consumer electronics are electronic equipment intended for everyday use, most often in entertainment, communications and office productivity. Radio broadcasting in the early 20th century brought the first major consumer product, the broadcast receiver...
company located in Issy les Moulineaux, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It was founded in June 2008 near Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
by three executives from the technology and telecom industry: Eric Carreel, co-founder of Inventel
Inventel
Inventel is a major French company involved in consumer electronics and communication systems. Founded in 1990 in Paris by Jacques Lewiner and Eric Carreel, cofounder of Withings, the company has been acquired by Thomson SA, today known as Technicolor, in 2005....
, and Sculpteo
Sculpteo
Sculpteo is a French company specialized in 3D printing. Sculpteo offers an online 3D printing service , using rapid prototyping and a manufacturing process involving laser sintering or stereo lithography . The company was founded in June 2009 by Eric Carreel co-founder of Inventel , acquired by...
, Frédéric Potter, co-founder of Cirpack
Cirpack
Cirpack develops local exchange and transit switches for telecom operators to deliver all the primary line voice services over legacy TDM networks as well as new broadband local loops using VoIP protocols....
(both company were bought by Technicolor SA in 2005), and Cédric Hutchings. Withings designs Internet-connected devices and describes its products as part of the Internet of Things
Internet of Things
The Internet of Things refers to uniquely identifiable objects and their virtual representations in an Internet-like structure. The term Internet of Things was first used by Kevin Ashton in 1999. The concept of the Internet of Things first became popular through the Auto-ID Center and related...
.
WiFi Body Scale
Withings' first product was the WiFi Body Scale, released in France in June 2009 and in the U.S. and Europe in September of the same year. The scale can measure both weight and fat mass and upload the data to the company's site over Wi-FiWi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
. It also connects to various Health 2.0
Health 2.0
Health 2.0 are terms representing the possibilities between health care, eHealth and Web 2.0, and has come into use after a recent spate of articles in newspapers, and by Physicians and Medical Librarians...
services such as Google Health
Google Health
Google Health is a personal health information centralization service by Google introduced in 2008 and announced for withdrawal in 2011...
and Microsoft HealthVault
Microsoft HealthVault
Microsoft HealthVault is a web-based platform from Microsoft to store and maintain health and fitness information. Started in October 2007, the website is accessible at and addresses both and . In June 2010, Microsoft HealthVault was launched in the UK, the website is accessible at - Components...
as well as diet and exercise sites such as DailyBurn
DailyBurn
DailyBurn is a health and fitness website that has a membership of approximately 500,000. It helps users to track their daily calorie intake, workouts, and weight. It maintains three priced plans as well as a free plan. InterActiveCorp holds a majority stake in the company.The website has an iPhone...
. It received much coverage in the tech press for its ability to tweet
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
the user's weight loss. The company provides apps for accessing the scale data for Apple iOS, BlackBerry
BlackBerry
BlackBerry is a line of mobile email and smartphone devices developed and designed by Canadian company Research In Motion since 1999.BlackBerry devices are smartphones, designed to function as personal digital assistants, portable media players, internet browsers, gaming devices, and much more...
, and Android devices.
Other Products
In September 2010, Withings received its first venture capital funding — US$3.8 million from Ventech, which Withings said would fund the development of the company's next two products.In January 2011, Withings announced at the Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
in Las Vegas that its second product would be a blood pressure meter that connects to the iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
. There it also announced it will produce a baby monitor
Baby monitor
A baby monitor, also known as a baby alarm, is a radio system used to remotely listen to sounds made by an infant. The transmitter unit, equipped with a microphone, is placed near to the child. It transmits the sounds the baby makes by radio waves to a receiver unit with a speaker carried by, or...
for use with smartphones and other connected devices.
Awards
- Withings' Smart Baby Monitor received two Innovations awards at CES 2011, for Health and Wellness and Personal Electronics.
- The Smart Baby Monitor was also named a CES Best of Show 2011 Finalists by iLoungeILoungeiLounge is an independent website covering all things related to Apple's iPod, iPhone, iPad and the related iTunes software. Founded by Dennis Lloyd in the days after Apple released their first generation iPod on October 23, 2001, iLounge is a popular source of iPod, iPhone and iPad information,...
- In November 2010, the Smart Baby Monitor received the French "Etoile de l'Observeur" design award from the Agence pour la Promotion de la Création Industrielle (APCI)
- In May 2010, Withings received an award from It'Night in the Health category