If you like the idea of starting a playlist on your phone with a spontaneous moonwalk, Samsung just made a limited-edition pair of sneakers for you.
The Shortcut Sneaker, which will unfortunately be limited to just six pairs, has been created by a combination of Samsung, Elitac Wearables and sneaker designer Roel van Hoff. Samsung-owned marketing group Chiel Benelux has also weighed in on this, so there's definitely a hint of vaporware in them, but we like the concept.
The Shortcut's soles contain motion sensors that track your position, with five movements or gestures triggering five different actions. It's still not entirely clear what exactly those shortcuts are, but some of the examples include making a phone call or playing music while moonwalking.
As the video below explains, you won't see these sneakers in stores. Instead, the six pairs will go to the contest winners, who must be Samsung members. You can enter the contest in your Samsung member account until July 9, and the winners will apparently be announced during the week of July 15.
With a design that contains multiple nods to Samsung's Galaxy phones, there will certainly be no shortage of entrants among hardcore Samsung fans.
Dancing to a familiar tune
While the Shortcut sneakers are more of a concept than a finished product or a sign that Samsung is moving into sneakers, they're definitely an intriguing idea that fits into a growing theme of hands-free gesture controls.
This week, Apple announced that AirPods Pro 2 owners will soon be able to use 'head gestures' in iOS 18 to answer phone calls. With the feature enabled, you'll be able to reject a call by shaking your head (or nodding, if you want to take it).
While the Shortcut promises to be “the world's first sneaker you can call your friends in,” according to Samsung, it's also not the first example of a tech-packed shoe we've seen, with Nike revealing self-lacing. , app-controlled basketball shoes in 2019 and these retro gaming shoes will also catch our attention in 2021.
Nothing can surpass the Return to the futureNike-inspired Nike HyperAdapt sneakers, of course, but we'll still probably throw our hats in the ring for Samsung's Shortcut sneakers while we secretly perfect our moonwalk.
