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Pawbo designed a fancy dog tracker

Pawbo designed a fancy dog tracker

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Pawbo

The annual IFA technology conference in Berlin always means lots of gadgets, for both humans and pets. I'm happy for the dogs. And this year, Pawbo, a company owned by Acer, is launching three new pet gadgets: the iPuppyGo, the WagTag, and the Munch. I assume you didn't gather much information from those names, so I'll explain.

The iPuppyGo is a fitness tracker that monitors pets' activity levels and wellness, including their sleep patterns, mood index, and health status. It pairs with a companion smartphone app over Bluetooth. Pawbo hasn't told us the operating systems its app works on, nor has it explained exactly what sensors the tracker has inside. All we know is it clips onto a collar, comes in five colors, and syncs up with a smartphone game called Treasure Hunt that encourage dog owners to walk their pet. It seems reasonable enough, although if you need incentive to walk your dog, that's not great.

Can you guess what the WagTag is? The name provides zero information, so surprise: it's a location-tracking device that relies on a combination of "GPS, AGPS, Wi-Fi, and 3G." It apparently has a mic built-in because it monitors dogs' barking patterns and alerts owners when something seems off. They can then record what's happening. Again, seems like a reasonable thing.

And finally, we come to the Pawbo Munch, which maybe makes sense as a gadget name. It's a treat dispenser that's controlled either through a remote or a smartphone. Unlike other dispensers, the Munch includes a game and plays music, so Pawbo thinks it'll keep pets entertained. This seems far-fetched, although maybe they'll stick around to see if treats are available. It's actually a cute device:

Pawbo

We don't have pricing information or availability information yet, but Pawbo says it'll be coming soon on its website.