qudi mask 2 animates expressions into pixelated emoticons when users smile, laugh or cry

Qudi Mask 2’s pixelated emoticons on an LED display

Qudi Mask 2 may help save drained social batteries. Putting on this wearable technology means replicating the wearer’s facial expressions into pixelated emotions. Raised eyebrows? Sure. Open-mouth laughter? Not a problem. Quivering lips? The LED display projecting the pixelated emoticons doesn’t mind at all. The party goes on, and what happens behind the Qudi Mask 2 is flashed onto the external display.

The face mask opens its mouth when the wearer speaks. It can blink its eyes and react to the user’s head movements. Polina Luhovykh, the creative director behind the startup Qudi and the mask, says that for the upcoming model, the new version of the wearable technology can show over 30 different facial expressions. Motion sensors pick up on the user’s movements and feelings, making the mask display them on the LED display.

images courtesy of Qudi

The wearable technology can customize facial expressions

Given its name, the Qudi Mask 2 is the second version, with the first one having 22 faces and animations, 17 animations, 5 equalizers. Design iterations are currently underway for the upcoming model. One of them is to allow user’s wearing eyeglasses to put on the mask without a problem. There are also three models in this series. ‘Robot’ is a homage to its predecessor, but this time, it has moving eyebrows. ‘Kawaii’ brings manga elements to the table, equipped with an ‘advanced algorithm’ and Emote Glyphs System to let the users create their own anime emotions.

The ‘XX’ model may be just a bit obvious since the Qudi Mask 2 shows two giant Xs onto the LED display. A Creator Mode is also coming, and this setting lets the users craft their own character or emotion using the dedicated Qudi app. They can drag and drop a selection of eyes, mouth, and expressions, and even adjust their colors individually. If the user wants one eye to be red and the other to be green, they’re more than welcome to do so. ‘There are literally millions of faces for you to explore and create, from ridiculously cringe to unexpectedly cool,’ says the design team.

Qudi Mask 2 can turn facial expressions into pixelated emoticons, projected onto its LED display

50 built-in bright colors for expressive emotions

Speaking of colors, the mask can be a technicolor show. Another update that’s on its way is the visual effects setting. Wearers can use 50 built-in bright effects to change the color of their pixelated emoticons. If they want, they can just go for the rainbow mode and have their projected emotions be disco vibrant. Qudi’s design team says that during its production, now that it has reached its target campaign, the backers can customize the skin and frame of their mask. They can add cat ears or alien antennas, which the first model didn’t have.

The wearable technology can last up to three hours on a single charge, which can take around an hour and a half. Switching the animations can be done either through the dedicated app or manually using the touch button on the mask. Qudi says it’s not difficult to breath with the mask on since it is not adjoining to the lower part of the face, so air could go in and out easily. There’s a clip on the side to adjust the mask to the face and/or eyeglasses too. As of publishing the story, Qudi Mask 2 has reached its campaign goal, and the design team says they’ll do their best to ship the first batch by Christmas of 2024, each item priced at 129 USD.

the LED display flashes the pixelated emoticons, even the moving eyebrows, for Qudi Mask 2

users can even customize their pixelated facial expressions

a ‘creator mode’ allows users to change the colors of their pixelated emoticons individually

there are 50 built-in bright colors for expressive emotions