With the opening of the Tokyo Olympics, the heat of the Olympics has not stopped, and at the same time, the heat is physically hot in Tokyo.
In recent years, a portable fan around the neck has become popular in order to survive the heat wave. It is an item that cools by blowing the wind on the face, but it is not good for hygiene to blow the wind around the mask now that the new coronavirus is prevalent.
Meanwhile, I found an item that cools the skin directly instead of blowing the wind. This time, we will review Sony's REON POCKET 2, which is the perfect item for the hot summer Japanese archipelago.
REON POCKET 2 is Sony's wearable thermo device
REON (cold temperature) POCKET 2 is a wearable thermo device developed by Sony. Like the wena series of smart watches and the Qrio series of smart locks, it is a gadget that appeared from Sony's startup support project "Sony Startup Acceleration Program".
Unlike a general portable fan, it is a mechanism that directly cools the skin using the Pelche element used to cool the personal computer.
This is where you hit your skin. It is made of the same stainless steel used for wristwatches, and you can feel the coolness by hitting it against your neck.
A Pelche element is one that cools one side and warms one side by passing an electric current. Therefore, it is necessary to cool the warm side with a fan.
There is a fan air supply port at the bottom of the back of REON POCKET 2, and the cooling efficiency is improved by exhausting warm air at the top.
The REON POCKET 2 body is surprisingly small and light. It's one size smaller than the iPhone 12 mini and weighs only 92g.
To hang it around your neck, you will need a special attachment (sold separately) or a special inner. I purchased a neckband type attachment separately so that it can be used in any outfit.
The actual appearance is like this. By cooling the neck, which has many blood vessels, the temperature of the entire body can be adjusted.
The neckband was under pressure to pinch it from the left and right, and it didn't shift unexpectedly or hurt my neck.
The main unit is battery-powered and charges with a USB Type-C port. It will be fully charged in 2.5 hours and can be used for 1 to 4 hours depending on the cooling level.
The main body is designed to be dust-proof and drip-proof, and it will not break with some sweat. Specifically, sports and work that cause intense sweating such as running are NG, but it seems that walking and golf are OK. In addition, it is not waterproof, so it seems better to avoid using it on rainy days.
It can also be used while charging, so you can extend the drive time by using a mobile battery. The included 0.95m actually measured USB Type-A to USB Type-C cable has an L-shape on the USB Type-C terminal side, so the cable will not be messed up in your clothes.
It looks like this when used with a mobile battery in the chest pocket. It looks a little suspicious, but I didn't feel the cable was in the way.
Evolution from the original REON POCKET
The following three points have evolved from the original REON POCKET.
In addition, the main body design has not changed at all so that accessories can be used in common, and the battery performance is also exactly the same.
Can you play an active part under the scorching sun?
Then, I will actually go out to measure the ability of REON POCKET 2.
That's why I took a walk for about an hour in the extreme condition of wearing long sleeves, long pants, a mask, and headphones on a riverbed where there is nothing to block the sunlight!
The temperature on this day is modest at 32 degrees Celsius, but it is clearly stated that "Please refrain from using it for a long time at temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius or under the scorching sun" (from Sony official). Also, REON POCKET 2 is not an item to prevent heat stroke, so do not imitate a good child.
I will install REON POCKET 2 immediately. The body is lightweight and the pressure of the neckband is exquisite, so the fit is comfortable.
By the way, if you wear a shirt, it will be almost inconspicuous. It feels pretty good.
Basically, REON POCKET 2 connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth and operates from the dedicated app.
The surface temperature of REON POCKET 2 is monitored by the dedicated app. Of course the surface temperature is very high,
It starts to cool as soon as you turn on the cooling mode. You can see that the neck starts to cool in a few seconds in a cool room and in about 10 seconds under the scorching sun.
There are 4 levels of cooling, 1 to 4. In the air-conditioned room, level 1 was cool enough, but in the riverbed under the scorching sun, the effect was weak at level 1. At level 3, the change is finally felt, and at level 4, it gets cold enough to become "Oh ~".
I think that it will be used properly as level 1 indoors, level 2 to 3 outdoors, and level 4 especially in hot places, but for the time being, it is also possible to set it to AUTO mode. REON POCKET 2 is equipped with an accelerometer as well as a body temperature sensor, and automatically raises the cooling sensation level when the body temperature rises while walking.
After a while, the neck will get loose and you will not feel cold, but in such a case, you can solve it by using WAVE mode. In WAVE mode, you can feel the continuous coldness by giving waves to the cooling effect. By turning this on, the neck was much colder and more comfortable.
The impression of taking a walk for an hour was "It doesn't change dramatically, but it's better if there is one".
I felt that the amount of sweating (especially the neck) was obviously reduced, but no matter how cold it was, long-sleeved long trousers made me sweaty, and I was uncomfortable mainly because my lower body became sticky.
However, I'm the only idiot who walks along the riverbed under the scorching sun with long sleeves and long pants, and such a case should be rare. For example, if you walk on a moderately shaded road for a few minutes to a dozen minutes, you can use it very comfortably.
The scene where REON POCKET 2 plays an active part
It was a little outing that I was very happy to have been using REON POCKET 2 for several days. It was very useful in scenes such as going out to a nearby convenience store or walking to the nearest station on the way to school.
Also, I felt that it was better to use it indoors.
I sweat a lot when I do housework in a space where there is no air conditioner such as the kitchen or toilet, or the air conditioner does not reach, but I can do the housework comfortably just by setting REON POCKET 2 to cooling level 1. increase.
It is also very useful in office work. You can cool yourself in an office or classroom where you cannot adjust the temperature without permission, or you can warm yourself in WARM mode. It seems to be recommended for people with poor circulation.
By the way, the sound of the fan is about the same as that of a PC, so I think it can be used in public spaces without any problems. If you want to concentrate at home, you can play music and it doesn't bother you at all.
Summary: REON POCKET 2 is a device that hacks the sensible temperature
If "Enter an air-conditioned room and cool down" is 10, the cooling performance of REON POCKET 2 is about 2-3. However, the appeal of REON POCKET 2 is that it is not possible to cool it down like a cooler, but the individual can finely adjust the sensible temperature.
You can spend a hot summer comfortably if you use REON POCKET 2 to respond appropriately to slight temperature changes indoors and outdoors. If you raise the set temperature of the air conditioner at home and adjust it with REON POCKET 2, it will be ecological.
Also, the point is that it can be used not only in summer but also in winter. You can also use WARM mode to warm your body instead of a warmer in winter. And it will probably be useful even in the spring and autumn when it is hot in the daytime but cold in the nighttime. The ability to regulate body temperature in any scene is a good thing about thermodevices that use Pelche elements.
On the other hand, there are some points of concern.
The first is that women may have difficulty. Due to the nature of the Pelche element, warm air is exhausted from the neck to the top, but a woman with long hair can have hot air trapped in her hair. Therefore, I think it is necessary to devise ways to put the hair together to improve breathability.
The second is fashion. You are required to wear loose clothing to ensure breathability. REON POCKET 2 itself is all white, so it may be painful for those who are particular about fashion.
From the spring of 2021, clothing compatible with REON POCKET has appeared from apparel brands. We are paying attention to future expandability.
REON POCKET 2 is a wearable thermo device that takes advantage of Sony's mobile device design. REON POCKET 2 has a lot of appeal as such a gadget, but according to a clerk at a consumer electronics retail store, production will end in late July and it will be sold as long as it is in stock.
The list price is 14,850 yen including tax, and it is sold at Sony stores, home electronics mass retailers nationwide, Tokyu Hands, and EC sites such as Amazon.co.jp. If you are interested, please check it out.
In addition, the first REON POCKET will continue to be sold. This is a relatively reasonable price of 9900 yen including tax, so I think you might try it with the first REON POCKET!
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