A hug a day keeps the hunger at bay

Ted Wiles has created four products, the victory alarm clock, the hugging toaster, the smile telephone and the reflective mirror. None of the products will work without physical interaction.

When it comes to turning off the arm the user must hold the two actuators and adopt a victory pose for two minutes, which is sure to wake anyone up. Enclosed within the hand-held actuators, accelerometers send the position via bluetooth back to the base, causing the alarm to finally stop after two minutes of use. This posture increases levels of Testosterone and reduce levels of Cortisol, making the user feel more confident and less stressed, which gives the user a great start to their day.

The hugging toaster requires the user to embrace it with a hug for the duration of the cooking, activating pressure sensors in the body of the object. The act of hugging increases levels of Dopamine and Serotonin in the user’s brain whilst reducing heart rate. This increases feelings of comfort and happiness. Of course, when hugging this toaster users need to make sure they hold it the right way up, to ensure their toast doesn't fall to the ground.

The smile telephone uses a camera as facial metrics scanning to determine the user’s facial expression. To make and receive calls the user is required to smile at their reflection. The telephone forces the user to engage with a positive self image of themselves and courses an increase in levels of Serotonin in the brain, which is sure to lead on to a more positive telephone conversation.

The amplified and distorted reflection presented to the user of the reflective mirror offers a moment of meditative contemplation. It is a moment to consider one’s self project image. It reminds the user that everything we experience is from a subjective perspective.