Microsoft Band and health app updated

As the Apple Watch and Android Wear devices battle it out, all other wearable manufactures seem to be working hard in order to keep up with the competition. Microsoft released its health app for iOS, Android, and Windows phones in November 2014, but until now all versions have required the Microsoft Band in order to use them. Today marks the day that a Band is no longer required for use, and that is particularly nice for those interested in health applications, who would rather stay away from wearables.

The tech giant also updated the Microsoft Band and the Microsoft Health with an innovative and interesting new feature. They have added the capability for users’ health information to be compared to others using the service. Exercise and physical data can now be compared  totally anonymous group of other users with similar body characteristics to gauge improvements over time. In this way, Microsoft Health breaks away from what we have seen so far from health applications, where most seem to focus solely on the individual rather than comparing someone to other users.

The refresh of the app also includes the health dashboard, where different metrics of users’ health can be reviewed, including oxygen used during exercise, sleep patterns, and optimal times for working out, and they have even added support for cycling. The device itself has also received an update to measure these new metrics. So far, Microsoft appears to be making some great strategic moves to add value to its own gadgets that may have otherwise been overlooked by the new software updates and hardware releases of its cutthroat competitors.

Source(s)