Meditation is a buzzword – I dare to say everyone has heard of it or knows someone who meditates.
…But this practice has been known for ages, so why is it suddenly trending?
Reasons for it, apart from the spiritual and religious ones, are numerous studies that proved meditation to be beneficial to mental and physical health. It is said to not only improve concentration, reduce stress, and help in grounding but also help in managing symptoms of anxiety, depression, heart diseases, and addiction recovery. Among other things, meditation was pronounced the fastest-growing health trend in the US in 2021!
In present times, a considerable number of people suffer from various civilization diseases, which cause them to seek help wherever they can. Many are eager to try a more holistic approach but are quickly discouraged because they don’t know how to do it, find it hard to relax, or can’t see results fast enough.
To facilitate these problems LAYER, and Resonate joined powers to create the LightVision meditation headset. Resonate is a startup offering a system that includes a chair and matching ottoman, headset, headphones, and a 6-month subscription to the content library, that includes guided meditations and exercises to make relaxing easier.
LightVision is said to induce a deep meditative state, regardless of the user experience level, in just 20 minutes. The headset uses the cutting-edge science of neural entrainment to re-introduce the meditative experience. The headset uses vibration, sound, and light to change the frequency and pattern of thoughts. The LED light matrix uses videos of natural occurrences such as crops bending in the wind and translates them into sequences of biomorphic patterns. Those, thanks to the LED lights, are visible through eyelids and directly change brain activity, causing a change in frequency. What’s more, when in use, the lights illuminate the user’s face to signal not to disturb them.
Let’s not forget the design executed by LAYER. Its goal was to soften the tech side, which might not encourage relaxing. It was achieved by wrapping everything in soft fabric from the outside. LightVision stands out with a tasteful, contemporary design and appeals to consumers who are ready for such a futuristic take on the ancient practice. The result gives us exactly what the company intended –
„tech accessory closer to a piece of fashion.”
LAYER
While I think it’s mind-blowing, how we can hack our brains with technology, I also think I would not use it. It is not my goal to come off as condescending, but for me, meditation is something, that should require “some” effort and a learning curve from a person, but then again, I consider it a part of my spiritual practice. I know that not everyone wants to link meditation to their belief system, so I think Resonate system will be perfect for those who just want to benefit from it while having an in-home, self-care experience.
This leads me to the conclusion, that Resonate picked its target audience very well. To my understanding, it’s directed to people who lead hectic lives (maybe have stressful high-power jobs), want to see the results immediately, and have above-average income.
The whole set costs $2,999 but is offered with a “$500“ discount when reserved online, which is tricky because the reservation alone costs $299, so it brings the total cost to $2798 instead of $2,499 as promised.
The systems are yet to become available to ordinary, private consumers, but Resonate has announced, that the first units will be ready for shipping in early 2022.
Sources:
https://design-milk.com/layer-x-resonate-lightvision-meditates-upon-the-state-of-calm/
https://layerdesign.com/project/meditation-remastered/#top-page
https://www.designboom.com/design/layer-resonate-lightvision-meditation-headset-12-07-2021/
https://hiconsumption.com/resonate-layer-design-lightvision-headset/
Great solution! Personally, from all this chaos and noise, I escape to various methods of relaxation. Yoga, meditation, care… but despite my best efforts, I am still distracted by something, catching my eyesight and hearing … I think this could be the perfect solution for me! It will focus all my attention on relaxing and calming down, I would love to try it, although it is quite an expensive purchase.
Great idea! I am full of admiration for such an invention. I would love to use a similar device, especially before the exam session. It is a pity that the device is so expensive.
By the way, I am not sure that artificially generated light is good for meditation. I have heard about research that artificial light does not help with relaxation.