March 5, 2007 5:09 PM PST

Code M, the musical shoes

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My, what shiny sides you have

(Credit: Dada footwear)

Almost exactly one year ago, LL International--parent company of Dada footwear--quietly announced the Code M system, a "proprietary, patent-pending wireless technology application for footwear that delivers both audio and data." Today, I'm refreshing my original Alpha Blog here to remind us all of the original design of these--how shall we say? Awesome shoes. You may be rightly wondering why, and the reason is twofold. First, we've just recently managed to get our hands on a preproduction pair of said footwear, and the final sale model is due for review any day now. Second, I once again found myself in the involuntary position of having to sport wearable electronics in a (public) CNET video... and, well, embarrassing action makes for good video, right? (Head over to the Code M product page to view the video, which should be up shortly.)

Essentially, the Code M plan came to fruition because Dada wanted to get its hands in the big money pot that is the consumer electronics industry. The development of the technology stemmed from LL International's president and CEO, Lavetta Willis, who was looking for a device that would not only play music while she worked out, but also track her mileage, pace, and heart rate as well as allow her to answer her cell phone and keep track of time. (The Philips-Nike MP3Run comes close.) Although the product pictured doesn't immediately address all of these needs, the Code M technology that's integrated into its tongue and heel has the potential to. The Dada Supreme shoes, which are set to launch next month, are capable of holding up to 100 songs and have a USB port built in for music transfers and battery charging (rated six-hour battery life). The shoes also come with a wireless headset with a 30-foot range. The cost for haute technology? $199.99.

For more than five years, Jasmine France has covered a variety of tech products for CNET--from scanners to keyboards to GPS devices--but she's happiest where she is now: sitting atop a pile of MP3 players, "testing" every music service known to man, and jamming a variety of earbuds in every shape and color into her absurdly small ears. E-mail Jasmine.