An interactive mirror, the brainchild of Alpay Kasal of Lit Studios and Sam Ewen of Interference Inc., is an interesting example of how touch and gestural interfaces are likely to become staples in our daily lives. Having worked on what is now growing to be several Microsoft Surface projects, I am always curious to see how the evolving technology will come to be used. This example is both fun and engaging, but I can see an interactive mirror having more practical applications.

For example, if this mirror were in my bathroom, I’d like it to include a clock. That’s pretty obvious but what if it also kept you informed of when the next bus was arriving at your stop? What if it displayed your scheduled meetings for the day, showed new messages from your email inbox, and made sure you were dressing (or styling your hair) appropriately for the weather? If you lived with someone you could share messages and gentle reminders with one another. If you were dieting or working towards some other goal, you could track your progress while it gave you encouragement. I see this as being less of a distraction or entertainment piece than as a tool to support you for the day ahead. All these ideas already exist both online and offline but once we have a truly integrated, ubiquitous approach, we will be able to truly leverage these emerging technologies for their connectedness and productivity.

Interactive Mirror from Alpay Kasal on Vimeo.

Via Johnny Holland.