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Hydration-tracking water bottle glows when you need a drink

A new smart water bottle called HidrateMe is blowing up on Kickstarter, proving lots of us want some help drinking enough water.

Michael Franco
Freelancer Michael Franco writes about the serious and silly sides of science and technology for CNET and other pixel and paper pubs. He's kept his fingers on the keyboard while owning a B&B in Amish country, managing an eco-resort in the Caribbean, sweating in Singapore, and rehydrating (with beer, of course) in Prague. E-mail Michael.
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Michael Franco
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Do we really need technology to remind us to do something as simple as drinking water? The makers of HidrateMe are betting we do. HidrateMe

While the amount of water we need to drink each day varies according to activity levels, age and the amount we sweat, it's a pretty safe bet that lots of us don't come anywhere near getting enough H2O -- especially in the warmer months.

A new smart water bottle aims to change that, by helping you track your daily hydration and glowing when it's time to take a drink of water. It joins the ever increasing ranks of personal monitoring devices that measure everything from the air around us to our sleep patterns to our overall fitness.

Called HidrateMe, the water bottle is now sailing through the early stages of its Kickstater campaign and is already awash in cash. It's raised nearly $200,000 (£130,802, AU$261,417) for an initial goal of only $35,000. And there is still over a month left to go. I guess it goes to show that lots of think we really do need a little nudge to stay hydrated. This might also indicate the dawn of a new era of smart water bottles, as we reported just a few days ago that a Singaporean company is shooting to develop a similar product.

The bottle, which is made from BPA-free plastic, holds 24 ounces of water. It has a sensor inside that tracks how much you drink and it transmits that information to an accompanying app on your smartphone via Bluetooth. The app collects data about your physical stats and activity levels and then calculates your ideal water intake per day. A graphic of a drop fills up the more you drink till you've reached your goal. If it's been awhile since your last guzzle, the bottle will glow to remind to take a swig.

Additionally, the app can track your location and adjust your recommended water intake based on that. If you're in the desert in Arizona for example, you might need more water than if you're in the Louisiana bayou.

The makers of HidrateMe say that it will also work with popular fitness trackers so that if your FitBit tells the app you've been jogging, the app will up your water needs for that day.

HidrateMe can be yours for a pledge of $45 (about £29, AU$59) and is expected to ship -- anywhere in the world -- in December of this year.