About 50 former Apple employees are working at a start-up called Pearl, which is making smart accessories for vehicles, according to Verge. The company was co-founded by three former Apple engineers, a crew that helped lead the design and development on several generations of iPods and iPhones.
There are currently 70 Pearl employees who have been working for over two years on its first product, a rearview camera that debuts today. The $499.99 RearVision is available for pre-order. It comes with a camera frame, car adapter, and phone mount. It’s compatible with most 1996 and newer vehicles. Use requires the Pearl app running on an iPhone 5 (or newer) with iOS 9 (or newer) or “select” Android phones with Bluetooth 4.0 and Lollipop 5.0 (or newer). Currently, the RearVision is only available in the U.S.
The RearVision system is a set of rearview cameras that fit around your license plate and sync with your smartphone. The cameras turn on when you’re backing up and shut off if you start traveling forward at more than 10 miles an hour. You get a live stream of the rear view on your mobile device and can shift between portrait view, with two levels of zoom, and a landscape view. The RearVision system will sound two different kinds of alerts: one to let you know a vehicle or person is passing behind you, telling you to slow down, and another indicating a stop to avoid a collision.
