Adidas has a nice business going in wearable sports tech with its miCoach line, and just expanded its reach by buying Runtastic for $239 million. Runtastic sells a line of smart bands, smart monitors and scales -- some of which overlap Adidas's existing products. The real value is probably Runtastic's 70 million registered users. The Adidas deal is the latest rollup of … [Read more...]
Fitbit Posts Strong Q2 Results, So the Stock Drops
Business journalists learn early: a company, its products, and its stock are three distinct things. It's also a truism that stocks rise on speculation and drop on news -- even good news. So it's not entirely surprising that Fitbit had a great quarter but its stock immediately lost 10 percent of its value. Analysts had expected profit of 8 cents per share on $319 million in … [Read more...]
Next Glass May Fold, But New Moverio is Built For Rugged Work
It's far from impossible that Google, which did so much to plant the idea of a techie visor in the world's brain, will wind up seriously trailing the market it helped popularize. There are continuing slow leaks about the Enterprise Edition of Google Glass, but none of them really comes close products like Epson's Moverio BT-2000. The Moverios were never anything you'd wear … [Read more...]
In-Ear Basal Thermometer Goes Kickstarter, But Beware the Science
Women who have difficulty getting pregnant frequently track their basal temperature -- the lowest body temperature of the day -- as an indication of when they are most fertile. (The lowest temp of the cycle is supposedly Go time.) One of the difficulties of getting an accurate reading is that your basal temperature is reached when you're asleep. YONO has started a … [Read more...]
Mondiane Smartwatch Available for Pre-Order, Uses MMT Movement
The first wave of smartwatches using the Swiss MMT movement from Philippe Kahn's FullPower Technologies are starting to hit the market. Mondiane's Helvetica 1, based on the well-known "Swiss Rail" watch face, is now available for pre-order. The Helvetica 1, announced earlier this year at the Baselworld watch show, is an analog watch based on the MMT movement. MMT-based … [Read more...]
Olio Smart Watch Closes $10M Round, Intros Gold-Plated Versions
Olio, makers of one of the more interesting high-end smartwatches, says it has just closed a $10 million Series A funding round led by New Enterprise Associates. In addition, the company has put on sale its latest round of limited-edition watches, led by versions plated in yellow or rose gold. As we've written previously, Olio has developed its own hardware and software … [Read more...]
Hajj Wearable to Help Pilgrims Navigate
It may be difficult for non-Muslims to understand the scale of the Hajj, when more 2 million people descend on Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia each year to participate one of the holiest obligations of Islamic life. It's a logistic nightmare -- housing, transportation, food, crowd control, health care, policing, and other governmental functions like visas, all need to be … [Read more...]
Nike and Apple Agree to Settle FuelBand Class Action Suit
We got an apparently legit e-mail this evening informing us that we were entitled to a $25 Nike gift card as a settlement in a class action suit against Nike and Apple. Say what? It turns out that a) there was such a suit, alleging that the companies knowingly made false claims about the health benefits of the FuelBand, and b) the companies are settling it. Anyone who bought … [Read more...]
Aviation Wearable Keeps Planes in the Air
The Australian aerospace company TAE will soon begin commercializing wearable gear that will help aircraft technicians keep airplanes flying. A story in the Australian Financial Review says Guardian Mentor Remote, developed by the Australian national science agency CSIRO, comprises a headset and visor that can let technicians bring in experts to help wherever they are in the … [Read more...]
Apple’s Earnings Are Up; Doesn’t Break Out Watch Sales [Updated]
Apple announced its second quarter earnings today, up 38 percent supported by big sales increases in China and strong iPhone demand. The company did not break out Apple Watch sales, lumping them instead with Apple TV, Beats products, and iPods. Sales for that group of products grew 49 percent in the second quarter, to $2.64 billion. CEO Tim Cook said watch sales were … [Read more...]