Athletic brand announces release date for self lacing sneakers

diipo adeusi

March 22, 2016 11:41 AM

Nike has just announced that the futuristic self lacing HyperAdapt 1.0 sneakers, we first saw on Michael J. Fox, from Back To The Future are going on sale this Christmas.

Nike self lacing HyperAdapt 1.0 sneakers

According to designer, Tinker Hatfield, "Sometimes, we deliver a reality before others have even begun to imagine it.” In addition, Nike has re-named the tech, titled "adaptive lacing".

According to John Hoke, Nike’s vice president of design, the shoes use a battery-powered series of pulleys that cinch the throat of the shoe. When the individual wears the shoe, sensors at the bottom register his or her weight and the position of the foot inside. “It reads if you’re heavy on your heel or heavy on your forefoot,” says Hoke.

Once the sensors sense your foot position, a series of tiny pulleys will contract the throat of the shoe tightly around the foot by winding thread around a spool. “Imagine a fishing rod,” Hoke says. The wearer can adjust the fastening by pushing on a plus or minus sign on the left side of the shoe.

Press it for two seconds, and the shoe will loosen fully, enabling increased blood flow and removal. Subsequently, Nike says it wants to make the micro-adjustments automated and reactive to biometric data, so they adjust on the fly.

According to Hoke, after a couple of wears, the shoe will automatically adjust to your preferred setting. As the “1.0” designation signifies, the team is already looking to how this technology can integrate a hyper-personalized platform.

Hoke says that subsequently, your shoe just may gather biometric data that can be used for an entire adaptable, reactive ecosystem of Nike clothes.

Nike says the shoes run on a battery that will last for two weeks on a single charge. So, yes, you will have to charge your shoes, just like your phone and FitBit. But it’s really a small price to pay to wear something so futuristic.

However, it won’t be as easy to get your hands on a pair. Apparently, you will have to become a member of Nike+, as that is the only way you'll get access to the HyperAdapt 1.0s when they go on sale later this year. As a heads up, the shoes will probably be very costly.

What do you think about the new shoes? Are you excited? Let us know below.

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