Oftentimes we think of air quality solely in terms of the oxygen we breathe while outside. Yet, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the average American spends more than 90% of their life indoors. This means the air breathed at home, in the office, or anywhere indoors is most vital to our health. Birdie is an adorably conceived wall-mounted CO2 monitoring device equipped to help determine whether it’s time to crack open a window or turn on an air purifier.
Instead of reporting complex data points, graphics, or charts, Birdie simplifies air quality reporting with a “canary in a coal mine” visual interface.
When air quality dips, so does Birdie, incrementally drooping from a vertical position on its perch. The winged reporter continues until a window is opened to invite fresh air to reset the CO2 back toward safer figures. It’s not only a simple and intuitive means of communicating sometimes difficult to understand environmental information, but is also a playfully realized object with a decorative design that people ages from 3 to 100 can glean vital information with just a quick glance.
If levels of CO2 reach over 1,000 ppm for over ten minutes, Birdie looks like this until the air quality returns to 800 ppm or better.
Because there’s no screen to power, Birdie’s battery life is measured in months. The rechargeable battery is rated to keep the yellow bird in operation up to 6 months with a 4-hour recharge. If you’d rather not worry about the battery at all, there is the option to install the Birdie with a plug-in charger.
Birdie creators Andreas Kofoed Sørensen and Hans Høite Augustenborg also just released an amusing limited edition Barbie-inspired variant if you’re more partial to Barbie pink than canary yellow. You can even nab a discount if you DM a picture of your Barbie movie ticket.
If you’re motivated to avoid using plastic items, note Birdie is made from 100% recycled plastic.
Birdie is available for $189 in either standard canary yellow or hot pink edition (with an option to just switch out the bird to pink for $29).
