Happiness is a warm iGun: Dumb gun requires smart watch to shoot

Despite Apple’s impending release of a supposed iWatch, the non-phone smart device industry hasn’t yet taken off. Gun company Armatix hopes to take the smart device industry by storm with its new smart gun system.
Armatix iP1 is a .22-caliber hand gun that has something of a symbiotic relationship with a paired smart watch. Thanks to a built-in RFID chip, the watch’s proximity to the gun acts as a safety. If the watch is within a close proximity, the gun will unlock — displaying a green light on the grip — and allow itself to be fired. If the watch isn’t within range, the gun won’t fire. The system is yet another step to make guns safer without making them “safe” by completely removing the public’s right to keep and bear arms.

At the beginning of this year, angel investor Ron Conway — early investor in Google and Facebook — launched a $1 million contest for inventors to create smart gun technology. In a somewhat juicy buzz quote, he said, “We need the iPhone of guns,” referencing the iPhone 5S’ Touch ID sensor. Of course, that kind of technology would ultimately need to be improved, as Apple’s Touch ID is much too finicky for a life and death situation, nor would it help your family member if you’re not around and they need to access the weapon in an emergency without having previously keyed in their biometric data.