Adidas running shoe has CPU inside

A US WEBSITE said Adidas will introduce a running shoe today that includes a CPU to control the way it adjusts to conditions.

According to the Daily Journal, the $250 shoes also include a cable system and a sensor which can auto-adjust to running conditions.

But the report does not say which lucky microprocessor company has made the design win. The system is powered by lithium batteries with an estimated life of 100 hours.

The Adidas One shoes remind us of a speech former IBM CEO Lou Gerstner made at Comdex about 10 years ago. He predicted then that using a mere handshake, it would be possible to relay GIFs, messages and business cards using a computer in the heel of a shoe.

Of course things have moved on quite a bit since then. Future shoes might contain radio frequency ICs which could communicate with other shoes, and using Microsoft's patented skin transmission, facilitated by sweat on the sole, transmit messages to a small headset so that people could grunt in harmony as they race for the finishing line.

Adidas has built a website demonstrating the awesome power of its shoe, here. µ

L'INQ
Daily Journal