The future is here. Well, not here, but in Korea. Quite a few companies have made prototypes of smart mirrors, but LG U+ has one on the market (in Korea). The LTE Magic Mirror doesn’t give you the weather as you brush your teeth (but you can hack that together yourself). Instead, it analyzes your skin and gives you tips about how to fix your beauty issues.
“Consumers can use skin condition diagnosis that was only available at skin care clinics at their home,” said Kim Young-man at LG U+’s Home IoT division, according to Korea JoongAng Daily. It analyzes your pores and wrinkles using high-definition cameras. LG U+ and furniture maker Hanssem collaborated to make the touchscreen-controlled mirror and consulted with dermatologists for the beauty tips. LG U+ cautions that it’s not a medical device, however, and isn’t responsible if its recommendations cause you to break out (or worse).
Use of the mirror requires a subscription to LG U+’s Home IoT service. When offering recommendations for products, the Internet-connected mirror takes into account local weather conditions, so it might suggest a more moisturizing lotion on drier days. Essentially, users are supposed to gaze into the mirror every day, and night, to get an analysis of their skin and how to treat it.
The mirror isn’t cheap, at around $811 (999,000 won). That price includes a two-year subscription to the required service. My Korean is a little rusty (OK, nonexistent) but it sounds like you might be able to use a rich friend’s mirror to do a diagnosis of your skin. That is, if your friend lives in Korea, as the mirror is only for sale at Hanssem stores, and because of the LG U+ Home IoT service requirement, it won’t work in other countries. “In addition, because the skin is dependent on local conditions based on the current solutions are not suited to foreigners,” according to a Google translation of LG U+’s product description.
