Rejoice! A Functional Gadget is Born.

I'm a former cycling addict and as a consequence I still watch races and occasionally keep up with new products that I can't afford.  Well, today I found a new product that was presented at Interbike (cycling industry product show).  John Bradley is at the show for Outside Magazine and reported on a great new innovation that will benefit anyone that uses a hydration bladder.

The Camelbak Flowmeter.

(Photo: John Bradley reporting for Outside Online)

According to John the flowmeter fits inline with any Camelbak hydration hose and should cost $30.  Finally, you will be able to monitor your fluid intake without taking the pack off and checking how full the bladder is.

My own observations: It's digital so it's going to need a battery.  The added weight will probably cause the hose to move (sway) more than usual.  Probably not a problem on the bike, but for running I'll need to figure out how to secure it.  I wonder how the internals will deal with anything other than water, such as Gatorade, Powerade, etc.  Hopefully it's water resistant and works in colder temps.

I perused the Camelbak website and couldn't find any signs of it, which is pretty typical with show stuff.  I would suspect we could see it in stores later this year or early 2010.  Any thoughts?  Too much gadgetry for the trail?  Is this something you've been dreaming of?