Microsoft's Band is an ergonomic nightmare. If I'm to think about the Band as a fitness tracker, rather than a smartwatch, it should at least match the five-plus days of battery life promised by most of its competitors. But, if I'm being honest, even that is not enough. so long as you don't actually fire up that GPS. And, truth be told you can get two full days of use. And, despite all this, the quoted battery life is still two days. Plus there's a surprisingly bright 1.4-inch screen. Microsoft likes to brag about how there are a total of 10 sensors in the wearable, including GPS. Part of the problem is the simply audacious ambition at work here. In short, Microsoft's Band is an ergonomic nightmare. Within two days, the device was so scratched-up it looked as if I'd been wearing it for years while living in the wilderness. Plus, that position puts the screen in constant danger. The screen layout and placement of the buttons all but insist you wear the Band on your dominant hand, with the display on the inside of your wrist, which is a tad awkward. It's bulky and stiff, with odd proportions and protrusions in poorly thought-out places. None of these things quite compares to the discomfort of strapping on the Microsoft Band. I've also worn a few Fitbits and spent the better part of a couple of weeks with a Jawbone Up on my wrist. I wear a watch - like a real analog watch - most days. Or, if it's created a sort of Frankenstein's monster that suffers all of their weaknesses. The question ultimately is whether Microsoft has built something (both physically and figuratively) that combines all of the most compelling parts of the existing wearable scene. But, as we all know, there are inherent dangers in trying to carve out a third path. And, most importantly, it's the first device to tie into the new Microsoft Health platform, which seeks to outgun offerings like Apple Health and Google Fit. And to that end Microsoft has packed the Band full of sensors, ranging from heart rate, to GPS and the prerequisite accelerometer. If you're using a Windows Phone, it can control Cortana and put the power of Microsoft's virtual assistant on your wrist.īut it is, to hear Microsoft tell it, a fitness device first. The Band can pull in emails, text messages and other notifications from your phone. It's not quite a smartwatch, but it's not purely a fitness tracker like the Fitbit Flex. Microsoft's $200 Band falls squarely in that latter category. Then there's this weird no-man's-land occupied by devices like the Samsung Gear Fit and Garmin Vivosmart. Either make a fancy pedometer that's supposed to stay out of the way, or go the smartwatch route and cram in as many features as possible. There are generally two schools of thought on how to build a wrist-borne wearable.
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