Smart bags for the connected traveller

New York

IT WASN'T long ago that the main selling point of a piece of luggage was its durability - think American Tourister and its rather excitable gorilla.

Not for Kevin Harwood.

Like many travellers today, he is looking for technology to go along with durability. He stumbled across a carry-on bag controlled by smartphone - with a Bluetooth-enabled lock, GPS tracking and a USB port for recharging a device. It has a built-in scale, too.

"I'm a little bit of a geek, always looking for products that extend from my phone, that connect my world and me," said Harwood, a 30-year-old software developer from Austin, Texas.

Why should luggage be any different?

At the crowdfunding site Indiegogo he was among the first to buy into a startup called Bluesmart that is developing a connected bag. Mr Harwood has plenty of company. Bluesmart raised more than US$2 million from more …