Microsoft Unveils New Fitness Gadget For Health Tracking

Microsoft has launched a fitness band that can also check your email and even pay for coffee. The software company is out to challenge Apple and others in the budding market for wearable devices.

Unlike other health systems, Microsoft Health will work with competing phones, not just those running Windows.

The Microsoft Band which was released on Thursday, comes months before the much-anticipated launch of Apple Watch. However, Microsoft's gadget appears more focused on fitness tracking and isn't meant to be an all-purpose smartwatch.

The Band will offer previews of incoming emails and alerts on calendar events, along with weather and other information requested through the company's Cortana virtual assistant. Cortana requires a Windows phone nearby, but other features work with iPhones and Android phones, too.

It will also have 10 tracking sensors, more than the typical fitness gadget, to monitor such things as heart rate, UV light, sleep and distance traveled. In a partnership with Starbucks, the Band will be able to create barcodes to make retail purchases through stored gift cards.

The Band will serve as a showcase for Microsoft Health, which follows the launch of Apple's HealthKit in September and Google Fit this week.

As more athletes and recreationists monitor and record their fitness activities, a chief frustration has been the inability to bring data from one gadget into an app made by a rival. As a result, nutrition information might reside in one place, while data on calories burned might be in another. Consolidating data — with users' permission — gives individuals and health professionals a broader picture on health.

For instance, Microsoft says having information in one place could help gauge whether eating breakfast improves running or whether the number of meetings during the day affects sleep quality.

Microsoft Health marks the company's latest push into mobile and Internet-based services as demand for its traditional software products declines. It's particularly notable in embracing devices running Apple's iOS and Google’s Android systems. In the past, Microsoft has been slow in making its services available for non-Windows systems.

"This is another example of the more agnostic approach to platforms being embraced under the leadership of Microsoft's new CEO, Satya Nadella," said Ben Wood, chief of research at CCS Insight. "Two years ago, supporting iOS and Android at launch would have been unthinkable."

Nonetheless, the introduction of a third fitness system — with a fourth one possibly coming from Samsung — could create confusion among consumers. Instead of having to visit 12 apps for their data, they still might need to visit three or four.

Microsoft said its Health system will work initially or soon with Jawbone's Up, MapMyFitness, MyFitnessPal and RunKeeper — in addition to its own Band device. Gold's Gym also will offer workout plans for the Band.

Microsoft is selling the Band through its physical and online stores.

- Times Dispatch