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Facebook will add fitness-tracking features to Oculus
You'll be able to track how many calories you're burning in 'Beat Saber' in real time.
Peloton's Apple Watch app will offer detailed metrics for indoor runs
If you're a Peloton fan, you might be pleased to learn the company has released an Apple Watch app. Though you would have already been able to view exercise data via Watch's native workout tracker, the Watch app should offer more options and detailed metrics.
Apple Watch bands may one day identify you by skin pattern
The United States Patent and Trademark Office just granted a trio of patents to Apple for Apple Watch smart bands. While bands with the features detailed in the filings might never reach retail shelves, they give an intriguing look at what Apple may have in store.
Fitbit's latest tracker is only available through your work or insurance
Fitbit has quietly released a new activity tracker, but don't expect to buy one yourself -- if anything, it'll be issued to you. The company's new Inspire is a fitness band intended for companies that plan to issue wearables en masse, whether it's your health insurance provider or a just a corporation that wants employees to stay active. It's the definition of no-frills. A basic version doesn't do much more than track activity and deliver phone alerts, while the Inspire HR adds heart rate monitoring and phone-based GPS. There's no price listed, but that's likely to vary from deal to deal. It's the company's cheapest device yet, however.
Aura squeezes its fitness band into an Apple Watch 'Smart Strap'
In May Aura closed a relatively modest $109,000 Kickstarter for its Band, a fitness tracker that it says uses biompedance analysis to monitor "fat, muscle mass, minerals, and body water." We spoke to the people behind the Band, who said it is available for sale now and starting to ship to backers -- it was scheduled to ship in August, but comments on the page suggest few, if any have received one yet.
App Store scammers are using Touch ID tricks to steal money
Reddit users are exposing shady iOS fitness apps that use the Touch ID feature on iPhones and iPads to scam people out of cash. Both "Fitness Balance app" and "Calories Tracker app" were active on the App Store until recently, though Apple appears to have now removed them.
Withings revives and updates its Pulse fitness tracker
Just two months after Withings extricated itself from Nokia's grasp and it is already launching its second new wearable. Delving into its distant past, the company has decided to refresh its original fitness tracker, the Pulse, for a new generation. The Pulse HR is a Fitbit Charge-esque band that offers long battery life, smartphone notifications and, naturally, the ability to track your exercise.
Misfit's $250 Vapor 2 smartwatch adds GPS and NFC
Misfit's Vapor 2 touchscreen smartwatch is ready to join the company's line of fashionable fitness trackers. Unlike the original, the Wear OS-powered Vapor 2 will be equipped with GPS and NFC, making it appealing for those who like the option of leaving their phone at home during workouts. Misfit also upgraded the smartwatch's optical heart sensor which tracks active and resting heart rates.
Motiv's fitness ring will log you in with a wave of your hand
Motiv has made a number of significant functional improvements since first releasing its fitness monitoring ring back in 2017, including Android support and sleep tracking. As of today, your Motiv ring will be capable of even more technological feats, though they're not the sorts of tricks one normally associates with fitness wearables.
Fitbit's Charge 3 goes on sale October 7th for $150
It's been over a month since Fitbit first announced the Charge 3, seemingly a major improvement over the two-year-old Charge 2 that it'll replace. If you've been wanting to replace an aging fitness tracker with Fitbit's latest, we now know the Charge 3 will arrive in just a few days -- October 7th, to be specific. As with the previous Charge models, the new one will set you back $150, which still feels a little bit pricy compared to the $200 Versa watch, but there are a number of notable improvements here over the old model.
Fitbit Charge 3 hands-on: Better controls come with a trade-off
I recently set my mom up with a Fitbit Charge 2 and had to go to great lengths to explain how to use its pseudo touchscreen. "You have to tap it, but really hard, more like jab at it," I told her, as she poked at the device. "Aim for the logo, it's a bit more sensitive there." My poor mom is almost 60, and learning a new way of interacting with a watch isn't easy. She looked on wistfully as I explained to her why the Fitbit Versa, with its easier-to-use touchscreen, was too complicated for her needs. More than anything, my mom doesn't like the appearance of smartwatches like the Versa and Ionic, preferring the simpler aesthetic of the Charge. I finally got her an Alta HR instead, which adds a few more features, but still uses that odd "Tap Display."
Pentagon restricts use of location-logging fitness trackers
The Pentagon is banning soldiers and others stationed at sensitive bases and warzone areas from using location features on fitness trackers and other devices because the data could give away where troops are situated. The Department of Defense is not issuing an outright ban on GPS devices and apps, but declared that the location features must be turned off in certain areas.
Garmin Forerunner 645 Music review: Better without the music
An invigorating playlist can be a runner's best friend, but for some, the Linkin Park jams aren't worth the discomfort of strapping a phone to your arm. That's why fitness-watch makers are adding audio playback directly into their products. This includes Garmin, which is giving the Forerunner 645 a musical makeover (creatively named the Forerunner 645 Music). For $50 more than the original, the new model lets you play your own tracks (or playlists from select streaming services) wirelessly to Bluetooth headphones.
Polar fitness data exposes homes of soldiers and intelligence agents
Strava isn't the only fitness tech company grappling with the security implications of its fitness tracking. Bellingcat and De Correspondent have discovered that Polar's Flow social platform can reveal the homes of soldiers and intelligence officials with little effort. As it shows all of a given person's published workouts on one map, you only have to find a sensitive installation (such as a military base or spy agency), pick someone who uses a Polar fitness tracker and then see if they have any workouts that end at a residence. Many of these people use their real names and tend to end workouts in front of their homes or hotels, making it easy to correlate their fitness info with social network profiles and other telltale data.
Fitbit's kid-focused fitness tracker is available today
Back in March, Fitbit announced the Ace, a wearable fitness tracker aimed at kids. Today, the company announced that the Ace is available globally today. In North America, you can pick up the tracker at Amazon, Best Buy, Kohl's, Target and Fitbit.com. It's available in two colors, electric blue and power purple, and retails for $99.95.
ASUS VivoWatch BP keeps track of your location and blood pressure
ASUS might have pulled out of the Android smartwatch race after the ZenWatch 3, but it's not quite done yet with wearables. At Computex, the company surprised many by unveiling the VivoWatch BP, a follow-up to the original low-power VivoWatch from three years ago. We're looking at a handful of new features and improvements here, with the highlight being a built-in blood pressure monitor -- a rare feature in the smartwatch category. The only other recent direct competitor is the Omron HeartGuide, which is also due to launch later this year.
Withings returns at a dark time for wearables
Withings, which briefly became Nokia Health, is now Withings again. Nokia bought the health-tracking business in 2016 and rebranded it, hoping to compete with Fitbit and even Apple. Amid a bad wearable-market slump, though, the division foundered. To make things worse for Nokia, it was also having other problems elsewhere, like with its costly Ozo camera. Withings co-founder Eric Carreel just bought the company back (for undisclosed terms) with plans to revive the original name and develop new products. But wearables have struggled to become the must-have gadgets they were once framed as, and without Nokia's resources, Withings will have a tough time.
Motiv's activity tracking ring now works with Android and Alexa
Motiv is making good on promises of widening support for its fitness tracking ring. To start, Android support is finally here in an early form. If you have one of a handful of phones (one of the Google Pixel series, the Galaxy S7 through S8+ and the Galaxy Note 5), you can download a beta version of Motiv's Android app to measure your activity with a relatively unintrusive band. The app should have more robust features by the end of the first half of 2018, but this will give you a taste if you want to try the Motiv Ring as soon as possible.
US soccer stars to play with GPS performance trackers
FIFA has been vocal about its ideas for the future of wearable tech in soccer, and now its vision is coming to life. Statsports is set to become the official on-field performance monitoring device of US soccer, and in the biggest partnership of its kind, will distribute 6,500 Apex GPS devices to players across the men's, women's, youth, Paralympic and Beach National Teams, Development Academy clubs and NWSL.
Fitbit Versa review: A stylish smartwatch at the right price
When Fitbit launched its first true smartwatch last year, it had something to prove. The company had just bought beloved smartwatch pioneer Pebble, and up till then had struggled to produce a wearable with a proper operating system. So it's no surprise that the Ionic was stuffed full of features. It not only tracks a comprehensive range of fitness metrics and provides onscreen workout tutorials, but also stores your music, streams to Bluetooth headphones, runs third-party apps and makes contactless payments. It even has a blood-oxygen sensor just waiting for the company to turn it on (but right now is completely useless). It's also not a surprise, then, that the Ionic wasn't cheap. While $300 isn't much compared to the Apple Watch and Samsung's Gear Sport, it might put off people who are fitness novices looking for a simpler device. The Ionic also didn't look like a regular watch, thanks to its hexagonal design that screams "Fitbit." The company addresses all that with its second smartwatch, the Versa. For starters, it will cost just $200, and comes with a simplified operating system that reduces the swipes you need to see your daily info. Most important, the Versa is the best-looking Fitbit yet.
