The Microsoft Band 2 received generally positive reviews when it first appeared as an efficient way to keep track of your health, email, workouts, and golf game. Now, thanks to a partnership between Microsoft and Volvo, it’s coming to your car. If you have a Volvo. And a Band 2 Those of you who currently fall into the small intersection of Volvo and Band owners will be … [Read more...]
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Ars Reviews Microsoft Band 2: Better Design, Slow GPS, Annoying Clasp
Ars Technica does one of its signature deep-dive reviews on Microsoft's updated fitness tracker, the Band 2. The site is generally very enthusiastic, in particular liking the physical design and the built-in guided training. In fact, the reviewer was especially impressed with the Microsoft Health ecosystem in general. On the downside, the clasp came in for particular … [Read more...]
Microsoft Band 2 Incorporates Cortana
Microsoft tossed out a ton of new products today, including an updated Microsoft Band 2 fitness tracker. The new version includes a curved OLED screen, a barometer, and can track a VO2Max. It also will support third-party apps as well as Cortana, the voice recognition application that Microsoft is rolling out across its entire product line. The Band, available for preorder … [Read more...]
Improvements to Microsoft Band, But You Still Can’t Buy One
Microsoft continues to tweak the software behind its Band health tracker, Paul Thurott reports, but you still can't actually buy one. The software and gaming giant put a limited number of Band devices on sale at the end of last year as part of what it is now saying was a soft launch. There's no word on when more of them will be available, or through what channels. If … [Read more...]
The Verge Reviews Microsoft Band: Great Concept, Middling Execution
The Verge is carrying a long and thoughtful review of the Microsoft Band and Microsoft Health ecosystem. Author David Pierce digs into the use case of health trackers in general and the Band in particular. His conclusion: the Band as a device has some drawbacks -- comfort, battery life, interface -- but the volume of data it generates is impressive and potentially useful. It … [Read more...]
Microsoft Abandons the Band
Sure looks like Microsoft is breaking up the Band. The excellent Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet is reporting that all references to the Band 2 at Microsoft's online store have disappeared, as has the SDK. That can't be good, and Foley reached a Microsoft spokesman who says the company has sold its inventory of Band 2s and has no intention of releasing another Band this year. They … [Read more...]
Microsoft Expands Distribution of the Band
Microsoft, which seemed to be using the first round of shipments of its Band wearable as market research, says it's expanding availability of the $200 device. Starting today, you'll be able to get the Microsoft Band at BestBuy, Amazon, and Target -- though the company says it'll be ramping shipments to them over the next few weeks, so don't freak if there's backorders. The … [Read more...]
Microsoft Announces Band Wearable, Health App, and Cloud
With Microsoft moving so aggressively toward cloud services and mobile technology, you could have seen this a mile away, even without the recent leak: the company has announced the Microsoft Band wearable and the Microsoft Health cloud service. First, the band. It's a full-featured device most closely resembling the Samsung Gear Fit. Black plastic, touch-sensitive color … [Read more...]
Forbes Says Microsoft Will Ship a Wristband This Year
Microsoft, by some measures, was the first company to sell a piece of wearable technology: the Data Link watch, developed with Timex, and first put on sale in 1994. Twenty years later, Forbes reports, the company is ready to ship another. The report is strikingly short on details, but does say that the device will be a smartwatch with a heart-rate monitor, will work with … [Read more...]
Will the Fall Bring a Microsoft Wristband?
... and now comes Microsoft. Paul Thurrott's Supersite, long a gold-standard source for Microsoft software news, is picking up vibrations that Microsoft will launch a fitness band late this year. The differentiator: it will work with all platforms: iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. Actually, the "big" news here is Windows Phone -- not many other fitness trackers work with … [Read more...]