Apple doesn't have its own wearable device (yet), and the iOS version with HealthKit software won't launch until the Fall. But it's started doing the groundwork to get the market ready. We were watching the first game of Stanley Cup finals last night -- go Rangers! -- and this ad showed up between the first and second … [Read more...]
Apple Announces Healthkit iPhone App
It's not the iWatch (although the keynote at Apple's developers' conference is still going on), but Apple just announced Healthkit, an iPhone app that consolidates health information from your fitness tracker(s) -- Nike Fuelband very much included -- and can share it with your doctor. The Mayo Clinic is signing on, as is a long list of other health institutions. More, we're … [Read more...]
Who’s Making How Much Money in the Wearable Band Market
We've been thinking a lot about the recent Canalys report about market share in the wearables business, and we've been trying to tease some actual revenue numbers based in the results they published. This is valuable because these companies are either private and don't publish revenues, or are public and don't break this market down in their financials. Canalys said that … [Read more...]
Fitbit Leads the Wearables World: Canalys
Anyone can project billions of dollars in the future, but counting actual shipping products is hard. The consulting firm Canalys reports that Fitbit shipped nearly half of all wearable bands in the world in the first quarter of 2014. Overall, Canalys reported, 2.7 million wearable bands shipped worldwide last quarter, and Fitbit's strength was despite the skin rash-related … [Read more...]
Report: No Apple Wearables at WWDC
Apple's big annual geekfest is its Worldwide Developers' Conference, slated this year for June 2-6. It's usually focused on software, although there are usually small hardware-related announcements. With all the smoke surrounding Apple's likely entry into the wearables markets, there are those who thought that WWDC would be the Grand Unveiling. Re/code says otherwise. It's … [Read more...]
Apple Hires Exec With FDA Approval Background
A couple of months ago, you may remember, Apple apparently sat down with officials of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to talk about ... well, no one really knows what, but the widespread guess is that it had something to do with the much-rumored iWatch. Now, there's word that Apple has hired Divya Nag, an up-and-comer in the medical device world who has significant … [Read more...]
Is Nike Edging Away from the FuelBand?
CNet is carrying a lightly sourced article suggesting that Nike may be getting ready to be out of the FuelBand business. The site cites "a person familiar with the matter" as saying that the sportswear company has had internal talks about suspending development on the popular device. The NPD Group, the article says, puts Nike's share of the $330 million wearable fitness … [Read more...]
Can’t Google Stick With Anything? Why To Be Wary of Android Wear
We may be approaching End Times, because this is now the second time in recent memory that we've agreed with Robert Scoble. This time, Scoble has an opinion piece on Huffington Post, questioning whether Google has the ability to stick with anything beyond its core search products. His evidence is scant -- Larry Page wasn't wearing Google Glass at TED this week, therefore … [Read more...]
What if the iWatch is … a Ring?
Artisans have been making watches for about 200 years, argues Craig Hockenberry. (Actually, he says they've been making them since the 15th century, but he's wrong.) Does Apple really want to compete with them? Or does it have something else in mind? Of course, there have been billions of bits spilled speculating on what the iWatch is going to look like and when it's going … [Read more...]
Google Enters the Real-World Wearables Market with Android Wear
Now we know for sure: Google Glass was a toy. Google announced today its entry into the practical world of wearables, with Android Wear. This version of the Android operating system will essentially expand on notification devices like the Pebble watch or the Samsung Gear. Where those devices drive information from a phone to a wearable device like a wristwatch, Android Wear … [Read more...]