The creators of the PocketLab call it the “Swiss Army Knife of Science.” It is, in fact, an appropriate moniker: A scientific tool that creates limitless opportunities for real-world exploration of data, physics, and math.

What is the PocketLab? Compact, portable, and apparently rugged, it is a small plastic box that contains an accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, pressure sensor, and a thermometer. All of these measuring tools are packed in a 1” x .5” x 1” plastic shell along with Bluetooth wireless transmitter. Bluetooth connectivity means that the PocketLab can connect to most mobile devices.

What makes this $100 “probeware” stand out from common features in the now ubiquitous smartphone arsenal that so many students carry with them on a daily basis?

The PocketLab’s unique characteristic is its real-time data feed (33 samples per second) to Bluetooth enabled mobile devices. For example, a user can place the PocketLab inside of a Nerf ball, spin it, and the gyroscope will send data about the ball’s rotation to a connected phone or tablet. Spinning a ball with untethered, easy-to-use data collection tools enables users to measure simple, authentic activities.

All that’s needed is a way to attach the PocketLab to an object!

Even more unique is the dual screen display for recording and collecting live data all at once. This is a missing element in other tools unless time is spent connecting the data to a video during post-processing (time consuming). This process is streamlined and dead simple with the PocketLab.

Scenario: Imagine a kid jumping at a playground. If the child has a PocketLab in their pocket and it’s connected to a secondary device, another person can record and collect data simultaneously in order to analyze how specific measurements correlate with videotaped movements (time, distance, and vertical leaping ability). Plus, collected data can be exported to .csv for detailed exploration in spreadsheets.

At $100, the PocketLab could be an affordable, applicable item in a classroom’s toolkit. Check out the following resources if you want to learn more about this exciting tool.

• The PocketLab Website
• The PocketLab Blog
• The PocketLab Twitter Account: @ThePocketLab
• The PocketLab YouTube Account
• Curricular Resources
• Fun Activities

Fictiv. (2015). Building dreams: Insights on becoming a hardware CEO. Retrieved 3 November 2015, from https://www.fictiv.com/resources/spotlight/hardware-lessons-from-pocketlab