'Tis the season... for people to be stupid and proceed to drink and then drive. It happens every year, yet there seems to be little happening to change it. One tech company is looking for a way to help, however, and this help arrives in the form of a gadget for your smartphone. It's called Alcohoot, and it's comprised of both an app and a dongle that clicks into your phone.
Per the Alcohoot team, it can then read your blood alcohol content to within one one-hundredth or a percent. This is police-grade testing, and it's available for far less than a police unit.
The Alcohoot is priced at $119. That's a bit more than the average consumer-grade BAC unit, but those don't measure anywhere near as accurately as the Alcohoot and police units. Additionally, the unit itself will need to be properly maintained and calibrated to function properly. Each year you send in your old Alcohoot unit for a new, calibrated one. This entails a $30 shipping fee. This also means that things are getting more expensive here.
It seems a lot to pay for something that might only be used in novelty situations. The app portion is where things are a bit more intriguing. Using the Alcohoot app allows you to track your drinks over the course of an evening, see how different levels of drinking affect your body, and also to find restaurants that might offer a place to sober up. The app also allows you to call a taxi with just the push of a button. It seems the app has a few features that could prove to be rather useful to the professional drinkers of the world, who also happen to be tech fiends.
Regardless of whether you have a $119 tester or not, just remember to leave your keys and your car tucked away safely should you pick up a drink this holiday season.
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