Announced in 2019, Sony has begun sales of its wearable, pocket-sized air conditioner — called Reon Pocket — which also works as a heater during the winter, according to Sony’s website.
Temperatures are soaring higher now more so than ever, which to many makes the idea of a portable, wearable air conditioner too cool to resist. Sony’s Reon Pocket is activated and controlled via a smartphone app, with the device itself using thermoelectric cooling.
Notably, Sony said it can also work as a personal heater on winter days, reports Design Boom.
The Reon Pocket can reportedly cool the wearer’s body by 13 degrees Celsius (23 degrees Fahrenheit), and raise body temperature by roughly 8 degrees Celsius (roughly 14 degrees Fahrenheit).
The device itself is a bluetooth device roughly the size of a card-holding wallet, and it slips into a special undershirt with a feature pocket at the base of the neck. Connecting to an app, users may control the temperature via smartphone.
The new Reon Pocket weighs a mere 85 grams (roughly 3 ounces). Source: Reon Pocket / Sony
Charge time, price, iOS, Android functionality
The new wearable supports Android and iOS functionality, and features a battery life of 90 minutes, with a 2-hour charge time. Visually it appears like an Apple mouse, weighs just 85 grams (roughly 3 ounces), and uses a USB-c.
Sony first debuted the device in 2019, with plans to launch just before the Tokyo Olympics. While the Olympics won’t meet their timetable, Sony has pushed the device forward according to plan.
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Each device will sell for roughly $130 (14,080 Japanese Yen) and is at present available for purchase on various Japanese sites.
From the images, Sony’s Reon Pocket is going for a sleek, minimalist aesthetic with optimal comfort — the sweet spot for wearable tech. As the world heats up from global climate change, it seems there’s a new way to keep cool on-the-go. However, the way we generate the energy needed to cool ourselves — especially via fossil fuels — may prove to exacerbate the situation.
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Brad Bergan Brad Bergan is a senior editor at Interesting Engineering, specializing in space and tech. Previously, he was a contributing editor at Futurism, and his words have appeared in or on VICE, Thinknum, 3:AM Magazine, The World Economic Forum, the National Book Critics Circle, and many other places. He holds a bachelor's in Philosophy and English from the University of Iowa, and studied graduate-level creative writing at The New School. He lives in New York.
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