Skift Take

Airline seats in coach are getting ever-more cramped as carriers leave the legroom to passengers purchasing higher-fare tickets. Anything that would make long-haul flights more comfortable to non-elite flyers would almost be like manna from heaven.

Have you ever tried to get some sleep flying in coach on a long-haul flight and your wrists ache from folding your arms, and your dreams inevitably get jostled as your hands fall to your lap, and your head snaps forward?

Enter Napwrap, a flexible and personal armrest that is designed to let passengers fold their arms comfortably, get some beauty sleep, and avoid playing who’s-got-the armrest with the passenger next to you in what has become an increasingly cramped coach class on today’s first- and business-class oriented airlines.

The brainchild of veteran long-haul flyers and product designers Bruce Backer and Mona Dehshid of Sittingbridge, Napwrap, as of this writing, has already raised $11,666, exceeding a Kickstarter campaign’s goal with 16 days to go.

Check out the video to see how the product works, and keep in mind that there could be an unintentional lesson wrapped in Napwrap’s story for travel startups everywhere.

That’s because, in addition to Napwrap’s stated goal of facilitating a comfortable sleep on board planes, trains and automobiles, co-designer Mona Dehshid says Napwrap may also double as a carry-on handle, a phone holder, an earmuff or an eye mask.

With product designs and travel startups, where you start is often not where you end up.

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Tags: airline seats, kickstarter

Photo credit: A new product for travelers, Napwrap, is designed to be easy on the wrists for sleep-deprived road warriors. Sittingbridge

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