Everyone knows the dangers of drinking and driving. An unfortunate few choose to ignore them, often with tragic results. Almost everyone has a good friend who has recently lost someone they love to a drunk driver. The sides of the streets are riddled with crosses in memory of those who have been killed in those very spots.<\/p>\n
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There is probably not anyone in the world who does not fully support any technology that can help prevent such tragedies. Here’s a gizmo that might help: Indiegogo project Breathometer adds a breathalyzer to your smart phone.<\/p>\n
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Similar in style to the Square credit-card reader, the Breathometer is a small, white dongle that plugs into your phone’s headphone jack. From there, an app takes over (Android or iOS), quickly reporting your blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) so you know whether or not it’s safe to drive. (In the United States, the legal limit is 0.08, though individual states may have stricter regulations.)<\/p>\n
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One could easily argue that this won’t stop, say, an alcoholic from getting behind the wheel. But I think a device like this is better-suited to casual or infrequent drinkers, those who simply might not know if they’re over the legal limit or not. (Say you had a big glass of wine with dinner. Are you positive it’s safe for you to drive?) Likewise, if you’re out with a group of friends, everyone always thinks they’re “OK to drive,” but the Breathometer can quickly establish who is and who isn’t.<\/p>\n
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And even if it won’t stop all drunk drivers, it might help stop a few — and that’s a step in the right direction. The developer plans to add more functionality to the app down the road, like a one-tap option to summon a taxi.<\/p>\n
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The Breathometer has raised about one-fourth of the $25,000 needed to fully fund the project. Pledge options include $20, $50, $75, $100, and so on, but what’s a bit odd is the timing: the higher your contribution, the sooner your Breathometer is estimated to ship. At $100, for example, you probably got it July. But if you paid only $20, you’ll have to wait until at least January 2014. That seems like a steep penalty for paying the lowest price.<\/p>\n
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Hopefully the gadget’s creators will get sufficient funding to ramp up production sooner, and maybe cut those delivery times. One thing is certain: It’s a much more convenient and elegant solution than the \u201cbreathalyzer jacket\u201d recently demoed at Mobile World Congress. In any case, do yourself and the people around you a favor: don’t drink and drive. Ever.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Everyone knows the dangers of drinking and driving. An unfortunate few choose to ignore them, often with tragic results. Almost everyone has a good friend who has recently lost someone they love to a drunk driver. The sides of the streets are riddled with crosses in memory of those who have been killed in those …<\/p>\n