As our propensity for Pavlovian conditioning gets co-opted by the latest gadgets, being mindful about our tech habits can seem like an exercise in futility. So, what happens when meditation meets self-hacking tech culture? You get things like the vibrating meditation egg. But should these “smart” gadgets have a place in your mindfulness practice?
“I see a lot of products coming out based on an easy-to-measure metric,” says Jud Brewer, Director of Research and Innovation at the Mindfulness Center at Brown University. “Yet gadgets should be driven by science, not the other way around. And from a practice standpoint, I’d like to see tools that help hone our internal awareness rather than reliance on looking at a screen to tell us whether we are meditating “correctly.””
The most important part of your mediation practice is the moment when you sit down to do it. And if it takes a gadget to get you in your seat, so be it. Here’s a list of 3 meditation gadgets vying for your attention.
Three Meditation Devices Vying For Your Attention
1. Core: A handheld meditation device that vibrates while guiding you through meditations. The device’s internal electrocardiogram tracks your heart rate and heart rate variability while you hold it. The app offers insight into how your body responds to each meditation session, tracks your stress-levels over time, and suggests meditations to try. hellocore.com
2. Inner Balance: A heart monitoring system built around the premise that your heart rhythm reveals your emotional state. A sensor monitors your heart rate variability while an app analyzes your data and categorizes your rhythm as being “coherent” or “incoherent.” Guided meditations offer ways to reduce stress, find calm, and sleep better. heartmath.com
3. Muse 2: A multi-sensor headband device that provides real-time feedback on your brain activity, heart rate, breathing, and body movements. The Muse app analyzes your moment-to-moment data offering feedback on your progress through graphs and charts. Guided meditations focus on your mind, your heart, your body, and your breath. choosemuse.com
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