Nike announced last week that the self-tightening sneakers that many have long dreamed about will arrive in time for the winter holidays. HyperAdapt 1.0, as the shoes are called, had the Internet and social media sphere freaking out.
Here are the basics you need to know about the shoes and why they’ve got sneakerheads and technophiles so pumped.
• First things first, do the shoes actually tie themselves?
Well, not exactly. The shoe’s laces are not like those traditionally found on athletic shoes, which crisscross along the top of the foot and then tie in a bow. Instead, there is a small motor at the base of the shoe that controls nylon bands along the top. Those bands can be loosened or tightened electronically using buttons and sensors built into the shoe.
“When you step in, your heel will hit a sensor and the system will automatically tighten,” Tiffany Beers, a senior innovator at Nike, said in a news release. “Then there are two buttons on the side to tighten and loosen. You can adjust it until it’s perfect.”