Like the evil queen in Snow White,
I consult a talking mirror every morning. "HiMirror, listen" is my
prompt—the 2017 version of "Mirror, mirror on the wall"—but instead of
telling me I'm the fairest of them all, it proceeds to take my photo and
analyze my skin for flaws. It's the brand-new HiMirror Plus (from $299, amazon.com),
a next-level image-processing gadget designed to help me achieve my
complexion goals... and bring me face-to-face with my own vanity.
ON TRACK
In this era of quantifiable data, tracking our personal health and fitness has become the new norm. I already use technology to monitor the steps I take, the calories I consume, the water I drink, and my heart rate at any given moment. But we haven't had anything to track our most prominent features: our faces. Until now.And, oh, what perfect timing. On the cusp of 40, I've become keenly aware of the fine lines blossoming across my face. I feel like I need to care for my skin a little more purposefully. This device—an innovation award honoree at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (read: the tech Olympics)—promised to give me detailed information on how I'm doing skin-wise without my having to stalk my dermatologist like a bloodhound.
Once hung, the mirror takes an HD photo of your face (sans makeup—this is key) that it will use hereafter to recognize you and as a baseline to measure any skin changes. (The company swears that encryption software keeps the data anonymous—mercifully, as these photos are some of the least flattering ever taken of me.) When the mirror detects that I'm nearby, the facial recognition system activates. A sensor at the bottom is supposed to work with a swipe of your palm. Mine wasn't functioning, so I ended up using my voice to command it—an extra fairy-tale touch.
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DAILY RATINGS
As you stand in front of the mirror, a box shows up that centers on your face and snaps another makeup-free photo. Using a proprietary image-processing algorithm, the mirror checks your skin for eight attributes: red spots, fine lines, complexion (your skin color), pores, wrinkles, roughness, dark spots, and undereye circles. The results are then rolled together to create a personalized Skin Index Synthesis. This report scores you from 0 (bad) to 100 (perfect)—more on the scoring system in a bit—in five areas: texture, firmness, clarity (a.k.a. tone), brightness (which, oddly enough, refers to how small your pores are, according to the developers), and overall healthiness. All of this info appears on the mirror and is also sent to an app on your phone for your reading pleasure.[post_ads]Today, for example, HiMirror rated me 99.34 for brightness, up 1.60 since I first measured my skin just eight days ago. My lowest score, firmness, is down 3.54 to 92.53. My skin averages in the mid-90s, which would be an A if I were still in high school. I feel a moment of joy for my good report card until I realize I'm not even sure what it means. Is anyone out there actually flunking?
According to Simon Shen, the founder and CEO who created the device with the help of dermatologists, healthy people's scores should be in the 90s. I am not superior. And I am not alone in my confusion about these scores. The brand, flush with user feedback, is already looking into changing the rating system. In the near future, instead of giving elements of your face a score, it may give you a percentage by which, say, your red spots reddened.
On the plus side, the device doesn't just coldly spit out numbers; it also sends helpful alerts, like weather updates that pop up on the mirror itself and ding on the app throughout the day. If it's sunny, it'll tell you to apply SPF; if temps drop, it might recommend you slather on something more moisturizing.
Speaking of moisturizer, the HiMirror and its app are supposed to be able to scan the bar codes of products you're using and then monitor whether they're good for your skin issues over time. If the analysis deems the products aren't working, it should show you similar products to try. But tech problems arise again, and I'm unable to scan the Kate Somerville cleanser and Kiehl's eye cream that I regularly use. Beauty tech isn't immune to the glitches most beta-version devices have (my first Apple Watch was convinced I didn't have a heartbeat). So I wing it: Looking at my slumping firmness score, I apply Tracie Martyn Firming Serum, and, noting the mirror's warning of humid weather, I replace my rich face cream with a lighter hydrator from Glossier. The company's working on fixing these bugs too, but for now, there's a support hotline to help you circumvent most tech issues; if that doesn't work, a new device could be sent to you. (Depuff and brighten your eyes with Bio Correct under eye concealer from the Women's Health Boutique!)
REALITY BYTES?
After a few weeks of hyperconnected hypervigilance, it feels a bit like I'm getting a daily Uber rating for my face. Is this progress?I call Amy Wechsler, M.D., who is both a dermatologist and a psychiatrist, and tell her about my new project. Wechsler isn't on board with HiMirror as a diagnostic tool. She compares it to those blue-light mirrors that some dermatologists use to show where sun damage has occurred. "All those did was freak out my patients and make things sound worse than they were," she says. Using a skin-care tracking device may make someone's self-esteem suffer if the feedback is negative.
It can also trigger unhealthy behavior. These ratings of our skin should be a metric that can gauge our progress and goals. But in the same way stepping on a scale can lead to a downward emotional spiral (or worse), daily skin reports can be problematic for people with confidence issues or anxiety. "Knowing your skin is a tiny percentage more or less firm could promote a kind of obsessive worry," says Joan Chrisler, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Connecticut College in New London, who specializes in women. Then again, it might be worth using sparingly, she says. "The first step toward behavior change is knowing what you're doing." For some people it might be a relief to know that your skin is bright and well hydrated, and that what you need to think about are just frown lines.
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SHIFTING PERSPECTIVE
Like all Disney fairy tales, though, there is a happy ending here. Mona Gohara, M.D., a dermatologist at the Yale School of Medicine, says a device like this could track the use of cosmeceuticals. "When I give out a retinol, I always say it should be four to six weeks before it works," she says. "A sunspot fading gradually might not be something you can see, but this might be a nuanced way to track it." In other words, you'll keep using a product before giving up on it. The mirror can detect microscopic changes in wrinkles, for example, so it is a more scientific way to evaluate whether my eye cream is actually plumping out my fine lines, or if that ferulic acid serum is legit fading the sun-dappling on my cheeks.To be honest, I'm now less interested in using the tool to chastise my face for daring to age than I am in using it to Kondo my shelves of the bottles that just aren't cutting it. I've spent enough time zooming in; moving forward, I'm focusing on the big picture.
THE DISRUPTORS
Other beauty-tracking tools revolutionizing our routines:Olay Skin Advisor (free, skinadvisor.olay.com) gives you a skin quiz and snaps a photo of your face to determine your skin's real age, then suggests appropriate products.
Wayskin ($129, en.wayskin.com) uses sensors to measure the moisture levels of your skin and provides real-time info on UV and humidity.
Samsung Lumini (price and launch date not finalized) takes your photo and then recommends products that address your skin issues, and/or a tele-consultation with a dermatologist.
