YOUVI plugs into the audio jack of almost any smart device and operates without any external power supply. The inbuilt sensor and the electronic measure digitalise the intensity of the sunlight Ultraviolet (UV) radiation as well as the air temperature and send the data to the mother device. The YOUVI App determines the UV Index out of the data and displays the UVI beside the temperature.

You can also share the current measured UV Index and temperature values with other YOUVI community members by uploading the information along with the time and location directly from your device. Those useful data can be mapped on the website and made accessible worldwide.

Today with us in conversation is Somakanthan Somalingam, the mind behind this innovation.

Tell us a bit about your background and how it all started – where did your vision for YOUVI come from?

We are a group of engineers, scientists and user experience experts with huge industry experiences in designing and bringing to market mobile and consumer electronic devices. We are located in Ulm, Germany. Prior to YOUVI we worked for a world leading mobile handset maker, acquired huge knowledge on thhe state of the art mobile hardware and software technology. We all share our passion for innovation and technology that is useful for humans in their day to day life.

The story of YOUVI began as the right people with the right vision teamed up to make our dream comes true: Building our own company! We all had the experience of turning on small screws on a big machine, having very little to say and to bring in our own ideas and vision. We were and are highly motivated to do own things, to feel the freedom to make any kind of decision on our own. The vision of YOUVI came as we frequently experienced skin cancer in our very close relationship. Having the technical knowledge and the drive to make our own things, we decided to make YOUVI as this would help an increasing number of people to understand the danger of sunlight UV radiation and to protect them from it.

How can YOUVI help in fighting the increasing rates of problems caused by UV radiations?

Sun is fun and sun is the source of all life on Earth! Sure! But, too much of a good thing may also cause harm. YOUVI can help to measure the sun UV Index and answer the question, “How much sun is too much sun?” As you may know small amounts of UV radiation can be beneficial for your health, but excessive exposure to UV radiation is associated with different types of skin cancers, sunburn, accelerated skin aging, cataract and other eye diseases.

The goal of YOUVI is to create awareness of harmful sunlight and UV radiation by providing an easy to use device that measures the ambient UV intensity at your spot accurately and in real-time! Furthermore, many factors like location, altitude, reflections, etc. affect the local ambient UV intensity. Hence it is not always advisable to rely solely on the UV Index delivered from far away observation stations. And people react differently to sun exposure. YOUVI enables each person to get specific protection information based on the current sunny conditions at their respective locations.  YOUVI can also be used to do research and long term studies on big groups of people in order to better understand the effects of UV on human beings, regionally as well as ethnically.

Has YOUVI got the feedback and growth you expected?

We receive lots of positive feedback when people came to know about YOUVI. But growth is not happening as expected due to lack of media coverage. Nevertheless, YOUVI has been in the public since a few days only. Hence we hope it will have a great future, because the number of people affected by UV radiation (also in India and elsewhere) is increasing due to the changing climate and living standards across the world.

What is the tentative price of the product? Will it be available in India?

Currently we have different pricing on the campaign:

29 US$ (Indiegogo special)

39 US$ (Early bird)

49 US$ (Regular)

The final retail price would be something between 39 US$ and 59 US$, depending on the market demand.

It will be available in India, but we would have to ship from Germany

What one piece of advice would you give soon to be startup founders?

It’s all about team work! Team up with the right people sharing the right passion and vision.

Thank you Mr. Somalingam!

YOUVI is an ideal source of protection for people living in high temperature, sunny locations and for those ‘seeking the Sun’ during vacations. Global Warming has ensured that our temperatures escalate higher with every coming day thus exposing us to the harsh sun and humid summers.

Let us know what you think of this useful app, drop in a comment below. We would love to hear from you.

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