A Ukrainian-American startup has created a smartmount for hands-off control of smartphones, and crowdfunded $125,000 on Kickstarter to develop it, while pitching for only $40,000.
Called QLYX, the company is developing a contraption that sticks to any surface, and can itself hold a smartphone with a magnet, allowing users hands-off control of the apps on their device.
The device would typically be attached to a car dashboard to allow drivers to use their phones on the go, and lots of people seem to see potential for the device. Since the company launched its crowdfunding campaign in July, it has collected pre-orders worth almost $125,000 (from 2,900 backers), while initially asking only for $40,000.
“This is a fantastic feeling. It’s like the moment when you successfully open your parachute,” QLYX CMO Artem Shvedkov told the Kyiv Post on Aug. 7, describing the startup’s unexpected success on Kickstarter.
“On the other hand, we feel a huge amount of responsibility. (Our backers) have had no opportunity to test our smartmount, or even to see a review by any tech geeks. They just trusted us, and now we’re working hard so as not to let them down.”
So what so special about it? QLYX connects to a smartphone and can launch applications, gather statistics about driving, and plan routes depending on the time of day and traffic conditions.
The device is paired with a phone via Bluetooth, and then the mount automatically launches apps chosen beforehand on the phone. These can be navigation tools, streaming services, or apps that help drivers remember where they parked their cars.
Currently the mount auto-launches Waze, Spotify, Uber, Apple Maps and Google Maps, and the company is working on increasing the number of applications and widgets to choose from.
Once a car is parked, QLYX can pin its location on a map so the driver knows precisely where it was left.
In order to attach a phone to the mount, users have to place a thin magnetic sticker on the back of their iOS- or Android-based smartphone. The stickers come in five different colors to match the color of the phone.
For the device case, there will be an option to order ones made of aluminum, wood, leather, or even a gold-plated version.
The QLYX team consists of 12 people, among them are technical and design engineers, industrial and graphic designers, software developers, marketing managers, and a project manager.
The startup has developed all of the device’s hardware and software, created several working prototypes, and ordered molds using the money its own staff invested, raised from “loans and pension savings.”
Given that so many people backed the device on Kickstarter, the startup now plans to continue collecting pre-orders on other crowdfunding platforms like Indiegogo and Machi-ya. But first, the startup aims to focus on manufacturing the initial batch of devices.
“First and foremost, we are focused on production,” Shvedkov the startup’s CMO said. He says all of the device parts have already been shipped to the United States, and in a few days, QLYX will start assembling the devices in Columbus, Ohio.
“Kickstarter required us to be a legally registered U.S. company, and after calculating all of the costs, we decided to set up the assembly process in the United States,” Shvedkov said. Now QLYX is a Ukrainian-U.S. startup.
“Are our Ukrainian origins causing any trouble? Not at all – as of now they’re only of benefit to us,” Shvedkov said.
The Kyiv Post’s IT coverage is sponsored by Ciklum. The content is independent of the donors.
