Wearable Fitbit automatically tracks your exercise routines
Wearable Fitbit automatically tracks your exercise routines
Although the world already has a set of headphones that encourages you to work out, the newly announced Fitbit is just a hair more sophisticated. Designed to be worn or carried around in a spare pocket, the personal tracker is about the size of a standard flash drive and includes a built-in motion sensor to keep tabs on "exercise intensity levels, calories burned, sleep quality, steps and distance traveled." When it ships in late December / early January for $99, the unit will reportedly boast a fancy OLED display for quick readouts, and hey, it should even arrive just in time to complement your entirely meaningless New Year's Resolution.
Oh sure, we've seen gadgets used as motivational tools before, but Sega Toys is apparently banking on you not being a hothead. Otherwise, you just might fling its Body Trainer headset from your dome as soon as you hear "please exercise a little bit harder" over your incessant panting. Nevertheless, those with oodles of self-control may actually benefit from having a personal trainer (of sorts) in their ear while working out, and by monitoring the wearer's heartbeat via a sensor, it can blurt out messages at the appropriate time to help users through their session(s).
The FitBit also ships with a 2.4-GHz wireless base and charging station. Slide the FitBit device on, and it receives a 10-hour charge. Walk by it while you're wearing the device, and your latest information is automatically delivered to the station, which passes it along to the FitBit Web site. The site is free to access, but only those who bought a FitBit device can deliver and manage their workout, health, and sleep information. You can also measure your progress against friends and family. Park called this "peer motivation".
The current FitBit Device has no display, but Park promises that the final product, expected this December, will feature an OLED display. The readout will include, among other things, a user-definable avatar that will shrink and grow to indication your progress. Kind of like a Tamagotchi, except you're the one you're keeping alive.
