You have an embarrassing problem. A bad habit, if you will. It has to do with what you’re doing at your computer. I know about your problem. Lots of people know about your problem because, like me, they’ve all seen you doing it. You’re not alone – lots of people have the same problem and… it’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with you. Promise.
This problem of yours we’re all so aware of? It’s you. Well, it’s not you as a person, but, rather, it’s you and how you’re using your computer. You’re just… there. You don’t move, you don’t stretch, you don’t do anything – you just sit there listening to yourself turn into a gelatinous mold while typing that email and surfing the Internets. You’re gonna end up like one of those human man-babies that were zipping all over the place in Wall-E. And I know, using your computer isn’t really conducive to standing up or moving around. It’s a real dilemma.
You know what, though? It doesn’t have to be this way and, lucky for you, two “new gents” have exactly what you need to get up off that thing and dance (or, if you’re shy, just stand around) till you feel better while still using your computer.
Erik de Nijs and Tim Smit, the creative brains behind the design company Nieuwe Heren, have created what may be the most innovative pair of pants you’ve ever seen: jeans with a fully functional keyboard, mouse, and speakers integrated within the fabric of the pants.
The jeans, appropriately called ‘Beauty and the Geek,’ developed as a project to “combine fashion with ‘geeky’ technology,” de Nijs told WebProNews. He added, “The idea was that you could log in to your computer and control it without sitting in a closed environment behind your desk.” It’s a pretty futurist concept and, if any of you have ever seen any videos of people at work inside the Googleplex or Facebook’s offices, you’ve probably noticed that employees are constantly moving around or using their computers while standing up.
De Nijs gave us the rundown of the design: The jeans are of a modern style, probably like the kind you’d see worn by your resident hipsters. As you can see in the picture above, the right back pocket has been specially designed to cover the mouse, which is attached to an elastic wire that runs through the jeans. In case you’re wondering how you stay in connected with your computer, the pants have a USB device that plugs into your computer’s port so that you can maintain a wireless connection between you and the computer.
As of right now, the jeans aren’t going to be at a store near you – at least, that is, unti a company invests in Beauty and the Geek and brings it to the market (wink, wink, Facebook and Google). De Nijs added, “The whole project is too complex and we don’t have enough money right now to to get it ready for the market.” Even with mass production of their Beauty and the Geek, he said, the estimated cost to purchase a pair would cost a little less than $400 (or 300 Euros).
In case you’re wondering about whether or not jeans that come equipped with a keyboard, mouse, and speakers would impede your ability to bust a move, don’t worry – the pants really aren’t that cumbersome at all. “They’re not that heavy,” de Nijs said. “With the flexible keyboard, small speakers, and small mouse, they are only a little bit heavier than your regular jeans.”
Aside from the ergonomic relief that these pants could give you (say, if you suffer from repetitive strain injury from too much time spent assuming the computer-at-desk position), this could really liberate your groove. The next time the Spirit of Boogie seizes you while you’re pouring over your Twitter feed, you don’t need to choose between getting up to dance and staying at your computer.
With Beauty and the Geek keyboard pants, it’s your world. You can have it all.