Thync – Calm or energy on demand

[devindotcom]

Please do not take the wild claims of these advertisers seriously. Mood and energy are barely defined, let alone able to be controlled reliably by a bit of transcranial stimulation.

This is a fabulously interesting field, but we should be spending millions on basic research, not Skymall level products trading on ignorance. (Yes, the two are not mutually exclusive, but the latter will hold back the former)

[dsjoerg]

The safety study (http://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/432410/documents/peerJ.pdf?t=1...) ran over a six-week period.

Has anyone seen studies that examine the longer-term effects or lack thereof? I'm not touching this stuff until someone has studied the long-term effects.

[knodi123]

Seriously, meddling in the workings of a running engine that we barely understand? I'm all for other people early adopting this tech, but I probably won't try it on in the mall.

[beefman]

I tried this. The sensation on the skin was a step below pain but a step above annoying and uncomfortable. I noticed no other effects. I only tried it once. YMMV

Their website is impossibly vague. Have they ever disclosed the operating principle?

[jpwagner]

I too have tried this. One of the founders walked me through the controls (which you can set to as mild or as uncomfortable as you like).

Once on, you're supposed to try and forget about it. I think you'll notice that if you try to think too hard about your shirt collar, it will feel uncomfortable too.

So if you "try to feel something", you may not like it, but if you attach it and walk around mingling at a party, you will notice soon that you feel quite easy-going.

[runn1ng]

They do have some scientific publications here

http://www.thync.com/resources/scientific-publications

[joshrotenberg]

I found the video to be incredibly vague and aside from being flashily produced and making me hungry it really didn't enlighten me to what the product does (or claims to do).

[trevordixon]

Related? http://www.radiolab.org/story/9-volt-nirvana/

[jadell]

Skeptical on this implementation, but it raises an interesting question. How close are we to having wireheads/current addicts walking around with drouds attached to their heads at all times? At what point does current addiction become consumer-grade? I guess the bonus with this implementation is that it doesn't involve dropping a wire into your brain.

[alexsherrick]

I think this is a cool idea; however, after paying $299 you only get 5 calm and 5 energy strips that are guaranteed for one time use. After that they cost $19.99 for another 5. This would be a very expensive "habit".

[lincolnq]

Obviously worth it if it enables you to work - e.g., lots of people pay for lattes etc.

[listic]

It's 10 and 10, I think.

[eveningcoffee]

So these guys tested it http://www.gizmag.com/thync-hands-on-2/37820/ and claim that it worked for them.

[DannoHung]

No mention of the testing protocol. Probably didn't even do a single blind.

[bkudria]

Study: http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2015/02/20/015032 (N=82)

[lawlessone]

I want to believe..

[zemvpferreira]

Me too, but I'm more than a little sceptical about the claims they make.

I'd be less wary if they had gone through FDA testing and could make proper, analytical statements. With $13M to spend, I'd expect them to be able to afford the process.

[joshrotenberg]

I'm vacillating wildly between "this is the future" and "we are all doomed".

[sdm]

Only accepting American customers; disappointing. They should make that clear on their landing page.

[listic]

Not to disagree with you, but if you're just interested in buying from them anyway, there are always reshipping services [1] that those living outside of the USA have to use more often than they would like.

[1] google for 'reshipping service' https://www.google.ru/search?q=reshipping+service&ie=utf-8&o... or try Shipito (I had success with it) https://www.shipito.com/

[_jomo]

Woah, I misread this for theync (NSFW!!) and wondered what that's doing on HN...