HeartRateMonitor
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Polar unveils an affordable heart rate tracking armband
These days fitness trackers tend to multi-task as standard. The likes of the Fitbit Alta HR and the upcoming Gear Fit 2 Pro offer everything from sleep monitoring to calorie-counting -- with Samsung's wearable also reportedly boasting swim tracking. But, all those features can prove a turn-off for buyers looking to hone in on one specific task. If, for example, you just want to focus on your heart rate, why would you fork out $150 for a bunch of tricks you don't need? That's where Polar's new OH1 optical heart rate sensor comes in. The $79.95 wearable trims out the fat to focus on your ticker, and little else. And (seeing as Polar's been making top-notch activity trackers for years) you can probably bet it does that well.
Panasonic can read your heart rate by looking at your face
Being a sports professional means keeping calm in high-pressure situations, or at least pretending you are when actually freaking out. Spectators are typically none the wiser, but Panasonic will be giving viewers some additional insight into the mind of golfers competing at the Panasonic Open Golf Championship 2017, which tees off in Japan later this month. Coverage of the tournament, which is being broadcast on Japanese TV and online, will show the heart rate of golfers on-screen, so you can watch the nerves kick in as someone steps up to attempt a clutch, chip-in birdie. It's intended to add a bit more drama to the otherwise slow proceedings, but just as interesting is how Panasonic plans on making this happen, using what the company calls "contactless vital sensing" by way of a special camera.
The Huawei Fit feels cheaper than its $130 price
It's almost gift-giving season, and companies are scrambling to release products that will fill your loved ones' stockings later this year. And plenty of people are considering options for the fitness fiends in their lives. Huawei threw its name in the ring today with the newly unveiled Fit, an activity tracker (with some smartwatch characteristics) that constantly monitors your heart rate. It's also really thin and light, to the point where it feels chintzy. The device costs $129, which is $20 less than the Fitbit Charge 2. I've spent about two days with a preview unit of the Fit, and so far, I think there are better options on the market.
Moov made a heart rate sensor you wear on your head
When representatives from the fitness tracking company Moov first told me they had made a heart rate sensor that you wear on your head, I thought the idea was ridiculous. But after I saw the Moov HR Sweat headband and swim caps (Moov HR Swim), it all made a bit more sense. The new device sits firmly on your forehead to get what Moov says is a more accurate pulse reading than from your wrist or chest. It then relays that information to a companion app that coaches you to work out better.
Intel wearables show models' stress levels on Paris runway
Intel's continuing experiment with wearables is getting serious. The company teamed up with British designer Hussein Chalayan to create smart glasses and belts for five models in Chalayan's Spring/Summer 2017 show today. The devices are powered by Intel's Curie module for wearables, though neither company has expressed plans for actually making these accessories widely available.
Jabra's truly wireless earbuds track your heart rate during workouts
Jabra just announced a two revised sports headphone models last month, but the company is already back with more portable audio news. This time around, the in-ear headphones are truly wireless without a short cord to connect the two buds. Following on the heels of the Bragi Dash and Samsung Gear IconX, Jabra's Elite Sport is two separate wireless earbuds that offer heart rate tracking.
The Caeden Sona stress-fighting tracker caused me anxiety instead
It sounds like a great, if somewhat abstract, idea. The Caeden Sona is a gorgeous wristband with a heart rate monitor that constantly measures your pulse, in an attempt to gauge how you respond to stress. It then teaches you to build resilience to stress through daily focus and breathing exercises. I tried out the Sona for about a week and was ultimately so overwhelmed by its design flaws that I was, ironically, overcome by stress.
Jabra's headphones can be prescribed by a doctor to monitor fitness
Doctors can now prescribe fitness-tracking headphones as part of of a patient's health management regime. Jabra announced today that ts newly announced Sport Pulse wireless headphones are now part of TrainerMD's HIPPA-compliant 360 Health Program. This means that the audio accessory can be prescribed by a physician or trainer to help a patient with fitness and nutrition. What's more, Jabra says that this is the first time a wearable device has been made available as part of a prescription wellness program to combat obesity, diabetes and cancer.
Adidas designed a wearable for PE class
Last year, Adidas made a commitment to help young students stay fit and healthy. This idea was born after the sportswear giant teamed up with Interactive Health Technologies, a firm that provides a connected fitness-assessment platform to schools in the US. Together, they created The Spirt Challenge, which encourages students from kindergarten through high school to be active. In exchange for doing that, they get rewarded prizes such as apparel, equipment and scholarships. And now Adidas is taking its efforts one step further, introducing a wrist-worn wearable designed for physical education classrooms.
Consumer Reports backs Fitbit accuracy despite lawsuit
Given that there's a lawsuit over the accuracy of Fitbit trackers' heart rate monitors, you might be wondering how trustworthy those wearables really are. Should you buy a chest strap if you need to track your BPM? Not necessarily, if you ask Consumer Reports. It just retested both the Charge HR and Surge under more stringent conditions (additional arm locations and higher-impact workouts), and it found that both were effectively as accurate as a chest-based heart rate monitor. The only significant deviation was when using the Charge HR in particularly intense workouts, and even that could be fixed by wearing the wristband on the forearm.
For Under Armour, health tracking is more than a wristband
Under Armour's pitch got me excited. Rather than dropping another fitness tracker on the world, the company had a vision. An ecosystem more robust than the competition and geared toward athletes, not just people looking for a pedometer. Sure, there's a wearable, the UA Band, but that's just one small part of the equation. There's also a WiFi scale, a heart-rate monitor, headphones and even connected shoes. Plus a raft of apps like Endomondo, MyFitnessPal and the hub for it all, Under Armour Record. It's a world of apps, gadgets and services that are supposed to work together to make a slimmer, faster and more motivated me. A little more than a month into immersing myself in that world, I've found that the truth doesn't quite match those lofty ambitions.
Wearable maker claims Apple and Fitbit stole its tech
There's a longstanding legal tradition in tech: a small company gets patents on a nice idea, finds only modest success selling the idea and finally sues the living daylights out of its bigger rivals. And unfortunately, that's carrying on in the wearable era. Valencell is suing both Apple and Fitbit over claims that they both infringe on four patents for accurate health monitoring, including "light-guided" devices like heart rate monitors.
Polar finally has a fitness tracker that can monitor your heart
As the optical heart-rate monitoring has improved, the technology has increasingly become a must-have feature for most serious fitness trackers. One notable holdout from this club was Polar, probably because it made a name for itself in chest-worn heart rate straps and, as such, had a little more to lose than other firms. With the launch of the A360, however, the company has finally decided to embrace the world of "strapless monitoring," although it's gone to great pains to say that its version is much better than everyone else's.
Jawbone's Up3 fitness band hits the UK just weeks after the Up2
At long last, Jawbone's Up3 fitness tracker is available in the UK. It's been almost eight months since the health band was first announced, so we suspect many Brits have forgotten about it entirely or bought something else instead. Still, while we wait for the new Up4 -- which offers an NFC chip for American Express payments -- this is Jawbone's flagship device. The "Black Diamond" version is available now (the "Silver Cross" version will follow later this summer) for £129.99 and comes with one key hardware feature to separate it from the cheaper Up2: heart rate monitoring. As we mentioned in our review, it only tracks your resting heart rate though, which could be a non-starter for workout fanatics. So if you've already bought the Up2, which only came out in the UK a few weeks ago, fear not -- it's probably a better deal anyway, at least until the Up4 comes out.
Nike+ to support Garmin, TomTom and other fitness trackers (update)
TomTom and Nike are back in each other's arms. The former's Runner and Multi-Sport GPS Watches, including those that come with heart-rate monitor bands, are now compatible with the Nike+ app. These two companies have collaborated back in 2011, when Nike came out with a sports watch that's loaded with GPS developed alongside TomTom. This time, the masters of navigation are giving you a way to auto-upload calories burned, run pace and time, among other types of data to the running app (and earn NikeFuel in the process, of course). Even if you don't use Nike+ for either iPhone or Android, though, you have other apps to choose from, as the company's watches also support TomTom MySports, RunKeeper, MapMyFitness, Jawbone, Endomondo and Strava. All you have to do now is find the motivation to do some actual running.
Parrot Zik Sport headphones do noise canceling, heart monitoring
Parrot's Zik 2.0 noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones may not be ideal for workouts, but fans may want to give the new Zik Sport a spin to get a similar experience. Granted, these are actually in-ears instead of the earcup type, but Parrot and Philippe Starck still managed to tuck in eight microphones -- six for noise-canceling, two for voice calls -- in addition to a heart rate sensor, pedometers and a five-hour battery (and this is with all the features turned on). That's a very impressive package given how much smaller these headphones are.
The new Victoria's Secret sports bra connects directly to heart-rate monitors
Sports bras have been one of Victoria's secrets for a while, but the latest model, "Incredible" warrants at least a passing mention here at Engadget. It houses sensors and other connected technology within the fabric, courtesy of Finnish smart fabric manufacturer Clothing+ - the same company that has been behind sports tech from the likes of Adidas and Under Armour. The $75 bra comes with the electrodes all built-in, but doesn't contain a heart-rate monitor itself. You'll need to connect that at the back, although the listing doesn't specify which "leading brands" you'll be able to do it with. Alongside the lack of actual heart-rate monitor, there's also no color-changing feature when your similarly-dressed sibling is nearby -- but we're sure customers will cope.
Fitbit's new wearable looks like a watch, crams in GPS and a heart rate monitor
It's been a while since we've seen a new Fitbit product, but according to a leak obtained at The Verge, that's because the company's been working on something a little special. The Fitbit Surge is a "fitness superwatch" that houses two must-haves for serious running types: GPS tracking and a heart-rate monitor. Crucially this would mean the wearable can monitor your activity without having to haul around your smartphone. (The likes of the Galaxy Note 4 or iPhone 6 Plus aren't all that well-suited to a jog in the park). The leaked marketing materials also suggest it will priced at $249 and will still be able to monitor all the less intense calorie burning done on stairs and your commute to work. Borrowing from the smartwatch category, the Surge is also promising smart notifications for calls and texts, as well as music controls. According to The Verge, the watch is rumored to launch in three colors (black, slate and tangerine) in the next few weeks, likely alongside the pair of more lightweight Charge fitness trackers - also leaked in marketing materials. C'mon guys, tighten up that security. We've reached out to Fitbit for more.
Jaybird's readiness-sensing fitness tracker arrives October 26th
Want a fitness tracker that can tell you when it's time to get moving, rather than simply record your movements? You won't have to wait long. Jaybird has confirmed that its Reign wristband will reach the US on October 26th at the $199 price promised back in January. The key to the Reign is its "Go-Score," which estimates your readiness for activity based on your heart rate variability -- the higher the score, the better-suited you are to going for a run or bike ride. It's also one of the few trackers that can handle swimming alongside exercise and sleep, so this may be your wearable of choice if you regularly hit the pool. So long as you have an Android or iOS device to pair with, the Reign may be worth checking out if you feel that other activity devices don't cover enough ground.
SMS Audio makes Intel's heart-rate tracking earbuds a reality
Back at CES, Intel showed off its smart earbud concept that matched tunes to your pulse, and now it's bringing similar tech to the masses. Thanks to a partnership with 50 Cent's SMS Audio, the heart-rate-tracking chops will hit the gym inside the headphone maker's new BioSport offering. Looking to "motivate and encourage" peak activity levels, the in-ear option packs a biometric optical sensor needed to monitor both physical exertion and relaxation. What's more, the audio add-on syncs the collected data with RunKeeper to keep tabs on progress, and as you might expect, the pair is IPX4 certified for sweat and water resistance. So how did the collaboration come about? Well, I had a chat with Intel's New Devices Group head Mike Bell and SMS Audio President Brian Nohe about just that.
