Microsoft today began to roll out the first major updates for both the Microsoft Band and the Microsoft Health portal. While buying a Microsoft Band is still proving nearly impossible, those who managed to get their hands on one will now benefit from a number of new features and enhancements.
The Microsoft Band update adds cycling tracking with a new Bike tile and cycling guided workouts. According to Microsoft general manager of new devices Matt Barlow, “It can track rides indoors or out, incorporates heart rate monitoring that is tuned to the activity so its accurate, can measure elevation and gain if you’re riding outdoors, records duration, distance, and calories burned, and provides custom splits, like the Run tile.” It can also use the GPS sensor to map rides.
More verticals, such as hiking and skiing, could be added later.
Microsoft also improved how notifications work on the band. A new “quick read” feature displays one word at a time on the screen. Pressing a button moves the message forward another word. Glanceable notifications that display the message without any interaction remain available as well.
My fav feature in the Feb update is the Virtual keyboard…replying to texts from my #MicrosoftBand for WP 8.1. pic.twitter.com/aFIQMjO3AW
— Paul Britton (@paulstorms) February 23, 2015
Microsoft also added an onscreen keyboard to allow users to respond to messages directly from the band. The feature is currently only available to Windows Phone 8.1 users but Microsoft plans to add support for Android and iOS if the feature proves popular. As to its usefulness on a 1.4-inch display, Barlow claims, “Proximity and touch technology and Windows Phone’s WordFlow keyboard make it work. The accuracy is uncanny, you can type very quickly by just tapping. It’s really a delighter moment when you try it the first time.”
Microsoft also launched a new web dashboard for Microsoft Health. It complements the Microsoft Health app available for smartphones and can present more information thanks in part to the expanded screen real estate. It offers a range of information about steps taken, sleep patterns, and caloric data. Microsoft plans to add additional information on a regular basis going forward.
Microsoft Band and Health also now integrate with both Map My Fitness and Microsoft’s own HealthVault which can let you choose to share your data with health care providers.
A SDK will be introduced later this month to open the door further to third-party apps.
The new Microsoft Band update begins rolling out today.
Source : Thurrott