The 90s may be long gone, but you best believe your Dunkaroos that there's truly no better way to get a child to drink water than to have them drink from the ungodly love child of a water bottle and a Tamagotchi. Of course, that also means children may be waking up to find their prized water bottle is "dead" thanks to their own negligence. This may cause children to develop the sort of deep-seated mental scars that will last a lifetime, but the good news is they will be well-hydrated.Sounds fun, right?The much beloved digital-pets of the 90s aren't something you hear about nowadays, but Bowhead Technology is betting big on the forgotten fad. The company—which aims to, "enhance physical and mental wellness in children through advanced technologies, interactive products, and compelling content"—has a Kickstarter goal of $100,000 to fund their flagship product, the Gululu Interactive Bottle.
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According to their site, "Kids can choose from a variety of virtual pets, each with its own unique personality and story. The pets live in the "Gululu Universe" and grow as your child drinks water." Parents can set a water-drinking goal for their children and there's even a "school mode" so that the digital-pets-cum-bottles don't cause a distraction at school. The feature will likely prove to be pretty integral, considering just how many schools eventually went about banning the Tamagotchi.If parents are confused about how much water their child should be drinking, no worries. The Gululu app will tell them.Each water bottle will have a display, home button, embedded sensors, Wi-Fi, and wireless charging—all for the low, initial price of only $89! The retail price will be going up to $99 soon.Bowhead is citing a Harvard study, which says that good hydration is linked with higher levels of cognition and attention in kids, to encourage investors to throw money into their capital-raising efforts.A photo posted by Gululu (@mygululu) on May 25, 2016 at 9:48am PDT
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When MUNCHIES reached out to Bowhead for comment, they told us the following: "Dehydration is an underlying problem that many haven't addressed and we felt strongly to educate and promote healthy drinking habits at a young age. We followed this idea with extensive market research and found that over 90 percent of parents believe that their kids are under-drinking. Gululu is our solution to this problem."Regarding their gamification of something as mundane as the necessity to drink water, Bowhead told us, "This bottle provides instant gratification for something long-term like drinking water, just as health trackers provides instant feedbacks and gratification for something longer term like exercising."Is the Gululu the answer to childhood dehydration and the revival of the retro digital pet, all wrapped up in one delightful package? Or will the kids of tomorrow reject the water bottle in favor of a glass of tap water and an iPhone?Only time will tell.