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Microsoft

Microsoft Band 2 discontinued wearable axed fitness tracker developer
Business, Software, Wearable Technology

Microsoft Suspends Development of Microsoft Band 3 UPDATED

Microsoft Band 2 discontinued wearable axed fitness tracker developer

UPDATED: According to ZDNet, Microsoft has sold through their remaining Band 2 inventory and has removed it from their online store. Also, the company has taken down the development kit for the Microsoft Band. We would expect the info page about the wearable to follow suit and soon be removed from the Microsoft website. While we knew Microsoft didn’t have a lot of faith left towards their activity tracker, it is surprising that the company planned to completely discontinue selling the Band when they just rebranded their health app from the generic “Microsoft Health” to the very product specific “Microsoft Band.”

 

Microsoft has reportedly ceased development of a third generation of its Microsoft Band. According to ZDNet, a few weeks ago the company disbanded a team working to port the Windows 10 platform to the wearable. Currently, versions 1 and 2 of the Microsoft Band run custom firmware. The move isn’t entirely surprising as Microsoft struggles to find an audience for Windows Mobile devices. In fact, MSPoweruser.com is reporting that Microsoft is pulling Windows Phones from company stores and WinBeta cites an anonymous employee as stating that the Lumia line of phones will be killed off by the end of the year. Since the Microsoft Band is designed primarily to interact with a Windows Mobile phone (non-Windows platforms are limited to a restricted feature set), with its ecosystem dwindling there is little logic in continuing to invest in Microsoft Band development. The software giant will continue to sell the Microsoft Band 2 at a discounted price of $175. Microsoft Health, the cross-platform cloud based health and fitness hub that the Band was designed to interact with, will continue to exist and, in fact, Microsoft is continuing to emphasize the service. But in a bizarre move the app has been renamed “Microsoft Band.”

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2015 Gift Guide Activity Trackers Featured
Gift Guide

2015 Gift Guide: Activity Trackers

2015 Gift Guide Activity Trackers

Activity trackers are easily the most popular and most mature category of wearable technology. People love to quantify their daily movement. Fitbit, for example, is the number one wearable device maker, selling 11 million devices in 2014; They went public this summer and have a market cap of over $6 billion. Fitbit’s numbers don’t mean it’s the best fitness tracker though. 2015 saw a lot of new players entering the market while a lot of existing players pushed expectations of what your dollar could get you. As these trackers begin to include more and more connected functionality, such as notifications and payment abilities, at lower and lower prices, the segment is likely only to grow.

Whether you or a loved one are looking for a wearable to help you monitor your general fitness or need a connected device but aren’t ready for a smartwatch, we have assembled a list of the fitness wearables that most deserve your attention!  

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Microsoft Band 2
Wearable Technology

New Microsoft Band With Curved Screen Officially Announced

Microsoft Band 2

After rumors and leaks, Microsoft has officially announced the second version of the Microsoft Band. The original version of the band was launched just over a year ago and, while advanced at the time, it has not aged well from either a tech or style perspective. We thought the original was decent, but not great; it was very restrictive in what it could do and was not very comfortable to wear. The follow up device looks to improve on at least one of those issues. The Microsoft Band 2 is a much sleeker device, trading in glossy black plastic for metal accents, moving from a constrictive, flat display to a curved screen, and shedding most (but not all) of the batteries on the inside of the wristband. For those hoping for a true Microsoft smartwatch, the wait continues; at its heart, the Microsoft Band 2 is still a fitness tracker. That means it tracks your sleep quality, steps, calories, heart rate, and VO2 Max. The company, as rumored, has also added a barometer to the device which functions like the one on your smartphone to track altitude change (think: number of floors climbed). The band also retains the original’s GPS chip. Hopefully there have been some improvements made to it though; we found the original took a tremendous amount of time to find itself and consumed a ton of power. Thankfully Microsoft has dumped the plastic screen of the previous model, which scratched it you looked at it wrong, and is using Corning’s Gorilla Glass 3.  

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Microsoft Band 2 Leak
Wearable Technology

Is This The Upcoming Microsoft Band 2?

Microsoft Band 2 Leak

Renderings were posted online the other day claiming to show the Microsoft Band 2. MicrosoftInsider believes these images accurately represent the second generation of Microsoft’s wearable. Our review of the original Microsoft Band found it to be competent but with lots of room for improvement. From a looks point of view, the Band was decently stylish when it was released, but only a year later it looks rather stale and clunky. The second version of the device appears to be much slicker, featuring a curved display and improved battery integration. We are also digging the metal accents versus the all-black-plastic style of the original.

Functionality wise, we still don’t know too much about how the new device differs from its predecessor. The only leaked information is that the Microsoft Band 2 will include the ability to detect changes in altitude (such as climbing steps). This is likely done through a barometer, which is present in a number of smartphones including the iPhone 6. Otherwise, we would expect to continue seeing a deep integration with Windows Phone and perhaps a degree of Windows 10 integration. We do not believe we will see any of the results from Microsoft’s WearDrive project in this year’s Band.

Microsoft is expected to unveil the new version of the Microsoft Band at a media event planned for October 6th.

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Watches

Microsoft Band Receives VO2, Cycling, And Analytics Update

Microsoft Band April 2015 Update Biking

Google isn’t the only wearable maker slipping in one last major update before the Apple Watch launch. Microsoft has announced it is rolling out a sizable update to its Microsoft Band. There are two major software changes and one hardware improvement.

First, the biggest news is that apparently the Microsoft Band has had a pulse oximeter all along, it just wasn’t activated (similar to Apple’s). The Band will now be able to use this sensor to measure blood oxygen. The data will be recorded during runs and workouts and will be used to compute Max VO2, an important metric of cardiovascular fitness.

Continuing with new data you will be presented with, Microsoft’s web based health portal will now offer analytical views of the data your Band records. Among the new insights are fitness benefits, run/exercise trend observations, information about sleep recovery, and comparisons against similar Microsoft Band users.

Finally, Microsoft is adding further cycling integration to the Band. This includes the inclusion of MapMyRide and Strava.

Microsoft has done a solid job of consistently adding new features to their wearable device. The $199 band is now widely available and can be purchased from stores besides Microsoft. For the full list of changes, head to Microsoft’s announcement page.

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Sports, Wearable Technology

Microsoft Releases Sensor Ladened Fitness Band

Microsoft Band

After a few recent rumors that Microsoft was working on a wearable device, the company announced the immediate availability of their new full featured fitness band, Microsoft Band. Besides monitoring sleep cycles, tracking activity, and providing guided workouts, it also displays notifications, emails, and calendar events. One of the standout features of the device are its sensors. Featuring now standard sensors such as heart rate and accelerometer, the Microsoft Band also tracks things such as UV exposure and galvanic skin response and has built in GPS. If you are a coffee drinker who is still on the fence, a forthcoming update to the device will allow you to pay for purchases at Starbucks. The bluetooth 4.0LE device has a 48 hour battery life and is compatible with iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. It is available immediately for $199 from Microsoft’s website or stores.

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