LAS VEGAS -- If your spouse, significant other, mother, father and friends are all telling you how to eat in order to shed some pounds, now, thanks to an innovative new gadget, your fork can too.
The Hong Kong-based tech company HAPILABS has unveiled its HAPIfork, a computerized fork that gives a gentle buzz when you're eating too quickly. The product counts each bite you take and tracks your average meal time, the number of bites per serving, and the number of bites per meal where you were "overspeeding," or bringing the fork to your mouth too quickly.
After each meal, the so-called "smartfork" syncs with a smartphone or computer app to track your eating habits and help you lose weight. The idea behind the HAPIfork is that if you're shoveling food into your mouth too quickly, you're more likely to overeat because you won't feel yourself getting full.
The HAPIfork uploads its data after each meal either to your smartphone via Bluetooth or to your computer via a USB key attached to the end of the utensil. You can track progress privately or share your meal information with the small HAPIfork community. Cheering on other HAPIfork eaters is encouraged.
A journalist tries the HAPIfork on the show floor at CES 2013.
The obvious problem, of course, is that not all meals are eaten with a fork or spoon. Sandwiches, French fries and pizza (if you're a real American) are all hand-held dining options. Presumably, the ideal HAPIfork user is one who eschews those temptations and eats every meal with silverware. Once you buy the HAPIfork, in other words, you have to ditch the fast food.
The smartfork comes in five different colors (pink and blue were on loud display on the Consumer Electronics Show floor) and also is also available as a spoon. The finished products will ship soon for a reported $99, per PCMag. You can sign up to be notified when the HAPIfork goes on sale at the HAPILABS website.
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