Upright Go is a posture training device you stick on your upper back. It alerts when you slouch and helps train you over 15 or more days to reach your goal.
It is a 1-axis tilt sensor hooked to haptic feedback vibrator, a Bluetooth 4.0 transmitter and battery housed in something reminiscent of those tiny white soap bars you find in hotels. The Android or iOS app tracks
We won’t go into the ins-and-outs of posture – we review technology, not physiology. Suffice to say if you suffer poor posture you will probably understand the use for this product.
Uprigth Go Setup
- Download the app
- Create an account with email, password, weight, height and age
- Answer some questions about how long you sit, if you experience back pain (scale 0-10) and a self-assessment of your posture.
- Grant location permission
- Calibrate to 0°
- And stick it to your back
Sticking it to you
I don’t know about you, but I do not like using adhesive to stick the device to the bare skin over my spine on my upper back. Sure it is unobtrusive, but you know it is there.
It is relatively easy to stick it on by bending your arm over the shoulder and placing it where your fingers touch the spine.
It comes with five adhesive strips, and you can order a pack of 10 for $14.95 (unsure of freight cost). Upright claim each strip lasts up to 10 days. It does not.
We tested for a week – not the 25-days recommended (for my age/weight/height), and adhesive strips lasted about two days – maximum. Reading the verified comments on Upright’s website confirms our findings on the adhesive’s lasting ability. And if you remove it regularly, the adhesive fails faster.
Disclaimer: I am not a sweaty, greasy skinned individual. I walk 5km each morning (temperature during the trial was 19-27°) and sit at a computer for about eight hours a day getting up regularly to stretch. In other words, I am sedentary and selected the ‘stationary’ preset. I could have selected Standard, Active or
Presets can also change delay times, and motion range. In the five-day test, I did not want to play with the presets and as the device has to go back after the review. So, I can’t comment on what the ideal preset is.
You remove the device at night, while sitting in an easy chair, or when you are lying down.
Two modes – training and tracking
For the first few
To switch between training and tracking you can press the button or go to the app.
Tracking mode records posture in ‘stats’. It rewards you with stars for being good – it should taser you for being bad. After all, this training is all about Pavlov’s Dog – classical conditioning training.
Frankly, the data gathered is not really actionable. Sure, it tells you the hours you spent upright or slouched and shows you a timeline in red and green – but that is historical.
Battery
It uses micro-USB 5V/.5A (cable, no charger, supplied). My first charge from 0-100% took just under 4 hours. The battery is 3.7V, 115mAh, .425Wh and there is no point using a larger amperage charger as it simply won’t charge faster. The best I achieved was just over three hours with a 5V/1A standard USB-2.0 charger.
Upright claim battery life is up to two days (an FAQ says 8-12 hours), but I found that 7 PM to 7 PM well and truly exhausted it. That is fine as you can recharge overnight.
Online support
There is a comprehensive Getting Started segment that explains its setup and use.
GadgetGuy’s take
This is supposed to be a review replete with star ratings for a range of features, performance, value for money, ease of use, design etc. Only I am not going to rate it as its effectiveness depends on you.
The design is fine except that in my opinion, the adhesive is an issue. But what other fixing method would work?
It is relatively easy to use – app, stick to back etc.
It does as it claims – records posture. But don’t be swayed by the masses of marketing hype – it is what it is – not a panacea for posture improvement.
Value – $119.95 plus $14.95 of strips every couple of weeks.
The Achilles heel is that you really must treat it as a tool to improve posture. It is totally passive otherwise. I am not sure the gamification (stars for reaching goals) is anywhere near strong enough motivation for Joe and Jane Average.
It has a 30-day money back trial, and frankly, that is what saves it – it is up to you.
