based in London Flipper devices It is known for its Flipper Zero gadget, used by hackers and tinkerers to access different radios with Bluetooth, RFID, NFC and sub-1 GHz transceivers. The company today took a different tack and released a productivity-focused gadget called Busy Bar, which helps you set timers, block apps, and display custom messages and widgets on an LED display.
Flipper Devices announced the device last year and is now putting it on sale next month. The Busy Bar looks like a desk clock with lots of knobs and buttons. On the front, it has a 72×16 LED matrix display with up to 400 nits of brightness, support for 16 million colors and a sensor for automatic brightness adjustment.
At the back, there’s a monochrome screen to show status, timer, battery and connectivity indicators. This allows you to see information if the screen is facing the other way. Additionally, there is a small speaker on the side for playing custom sounds and notifications.
At the top, there is a mode selector switch, a start/stop button, an indicator and a scroll wheel for navigating menus and setting the time. The device has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and USB connectivity options.
The Busy Bar has a 3250 mAh battery, which can last up to eight hours of active mode and up to two weeks of standby time. The company said that with a 15W adapter, users can fully charge the device in one hour.
The idea behind the device is that you can set a message to indicate to others (and yourself) when you’re doing a task. This is useful in a work from home setup where you may have other people at home. You can also set Pomodoro timers for productivity blocks to focus on getting things done.
Flipper Devices releases apps for iOS, Android, and macOS, with planned support for a Windows app. Users can block select apps with different types of timers on iOS and Android. In addition, there is a microphone integration with macOS, through which the device displays an “on call” status on the screen and disables notifications when you join meetings or start recording or streaming.
The Busy Bar is also Matter certified, meaning it can work with your existing smart home setup in smart home ecosystems based on Amazon, Apple and Google. This means that users can activate smart home automation based on the status of the line.
The company has made the device developer-friendly for customization with open firmware. They can use open HTTP API, MQTT, and official Python and TypeScript libraries to create widgets and components. Users can also check the Busy Bar over the internet via the cloud API.
Users can join the waiting list and get the Busy Bar for a special price of $179. Once it goes on open sale, the first 3,000 users will be able to purchase the device for $199. All other users will have to pay $249 for the device. Shipping and sales will begin on July 14th in the US, EU, UK and Canada. The company also plans to release accessories such as wall mounts, screen protectors and custom switches.
Added clarification about different prices based on times and waitlist
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