Sena, NUVIZ team up on new smart helmet technology

Smart helmet manufacturer NUVIZ has joined forces with helmet communicator manufacturer Sena, with the results of their collaboration to hit market next riding season.

For most motorcyclists, Sena needs little introduction. For several years now, Sena has been considered the market leader in helmet communication systems, with several innovations such as a Bluetooth headset with integrated video camera, and even its own line of basic smart helmets.

As for NUVIZ: the company has been mentioned a few times on CMG over the years. Unlike Skully, the infamous over-hyped smart helmet manufacturer that crashed and burned so spectacularly, NUVIZ has actually been getting product to market, and has already shown interest in working with other companies with an aim towards innovation. Of all the smart helmet start-ups, NUVIZ seems to be one of the few with substance behind the marketing.

So, what is going to be the result of this team-up? For now, the PR teams are keeping things cryptic; the press release says “The companies will collaborate on a joint product offering for the motorcycling community, which is expected to be available in early 2018.” Interesting, but not enlightening. A few lines down, we’re told “We expect to introduce our innovative joint product development endeavor to a highly receptive motorcycling community in early 2018, and we look forward to continuing this relationship long term.” Again, very interesting to think of the possibilities, but not much to explain what exactly we can expect to see.

But, just guessing, we’d predict this is probably the end of Sena’s foray into the smart helmet world. It would make no sense to team up with a competitor. Instead, we’d guess Sena’s going to licence its technology to NUVIZ, which is good news if you want a smart helmet that works well. While Sena comm units are not without some niggles, they’re overall considered the best option on the market, and if that translates over to NUVIZ’s smart helmets, then those products have a better chance of acceptance—as long as the average rider can afford them.