Ralph Lauren Smart Shirt

A new wearable T-Shirt, this Tee from Ralph Lauren will create waves in the fashion world and in the tennis court.

Over the previous week, David Lauren, executive vice president for advertising, marketing and corporate communications of the world renowned brand will be outfitting the US Open ball boys with nylon T-Shirts that could monitor their heart rate alongside their breathing and stress levels. Yes, Ralph Lauren is the latest to join the crowding smart wearable bandwagon.

“We live in our clothes,” Lauren said as he described the company’s entry to the tech world. While others are into smart watches, “headbands and cool sneakers”, Ralph Lauren decided to stick to their roots and as such, a “slick, form-fitting black athletic shirt” outfitted with the latest in monitoring technology will be unveiled in front of the Open audience. Of course, the iconic polo pony logo will still be present.

On the inside is distinct conductive threat coated with silver woven directly to the shirts fiber. Paired with a corresponding app, the shirt will directly display all monitoring details on a dashboard, or on your smartphone. In plain sight, the shirt will be as traditional but with modern technology: nothing fancy, no wires or prongs.

It’s a step in the sporting world, nonetheless. A relatively new design with a potential to be utilized in other sports, from jerseys to swimming gears. The possibilities are endless. For now, we’d settle for the ball boys.