TMCnet News
Microsoft jumps into the growing market for wearable fitness technology [Armenpress News Agency](Armenpress News Agency Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) YEREVAN, OCTOBER 30, ARMENPRESS: Microsoft has a place on desks, in living rooms and pockets. Now, like many other big technology companies, Microsoft believes it belongs on wrists. The company has created a wrist-worn fitness device, Microsoft Band, and a related online service, Microsoft Health, that will analyze the data from the band and other devices to help people with their fitness goals, Armenpress reports citing the New York Times. Microsoft is joining a stampede of companies creating wearable technology products for collecting personal health and exercise data. Technology companies see wearables as a way into the huge wellness business without all the red tape that comes from being a true medical company. Microsoft's black rubber bracelet resembles other products that have come before it. It contains a display that will show text messages from a cellphone, Facebook alerts and even bar codes that allow people to pay for coffee at a Starbucks from their wrists. Sensors in the device will continuously track heart rate, sleep quality and calories burned. The band is a departure for Microsoft in many respects, though, brimming with technologies often available only in more expensive products. For instance, the band includes GPS satellite tracking. The inclusion of GPS means runners who want to track distance only need to wear the band — they do not need to carry their cellphones. What is more, Microsoft is charging $199 for the device. Apple's Apple Watch, due out sometime next year, will start at $349 and require a phone for GPS tracking. Fitbit, a leader in wearable fitness devices, recently announced a watch with GPS called Surge, available early next year, that will cost $250. And, in an unusual move for a company often criticized for announcing products months before it actually ships them, Microsoft planned to begin selling the band through its website and retail stores starting Thursday. "We don't think there's any other device with this level of functionality," said Yusuf Mehdi, a corporate vice president for devices and studios, in a demonstration of the device on Microsoft's campus on Wednesday. Microsoft said it was working with other wearable device companies and app makers, including Jawbone, MapMyFitness and RunKeeper, to share data between the different products. The Microsoft Health app, which will wirelessly collect data from the company's fitness band, will work on Apple and Android smartphones, along with Microsoft's own Windows Phone. Microsoft will have a formidable competitor in Apple, a company that has managed to outflank it again and again in mobile devices. Apple Watch is a more ambitious effort to cater to both fitness enthusiasts and people who wear luxury watches. (c) 2014 Armenpress. All rights reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |