The holidays wreak havoc on our bodies, with their mandatory over-indulgence in food as well as family and reminiscences. As we reflect on the year past ? its victories and losses ? we also begin looking ahead to the next, and in big ways or small, making plans to keep our momentum going.
For many, this involves taking health more seriously, whether it?s losing a few pounds, training for that first marathon, or just being more active. In turn, there?s been a lot of activity in the health space over the last year, as we?ve seen a number of apps and startups launch ? or continue iterating ? in the quest to help us make healthier choices, get in shape and conquer the world.
In fact, for Quantified Self devotees, data-vores and the fitness conscious it?s a great time to be alive. Wearable health-tracking devices and health information and networking platforms are maturing, as is the technology that makes them tick, and it won?t be long before doctors are prescribing mobile health apps and devices. The FDA?s recent approval of AliveCor?s iPhone-based heart monitor is just one great example of how much there is to be excited about at the intersection of technology and health.
Nonetheless, with all the excitement in the space, it can be tough to cut through the noise, keep tabs on all the options and figure out which apps and startups should matter for you. Everyone has their own individual agenda, but collectively we?re all bound to be making a few health-related resolutions in preparation for 2013 and beyond. Without further ado, the Health Stars:
1. Jawbone UP
Up is one of the members of the exciting new generation of movement and health-tracking devices. The $129 bracelet suffered from some major problems when it first debuted, but it re-emerged in November with a much-improved look and experience. You can use it to track your activity during the day, your sleep at night, as well as log food intake and mood to give you a better overall picture of your health, happiness and calorie input and output.?
The device comes with about a week?s worth of battery life in a single charge, is sleek and relatively unobtrusive, insulated in rubber and is waterproof. It includes a silent alarm that will wake you in the morning at the right time and a buzzer to remind you when it?s time to get up and get moving during the day.
Most of the re-design centers around the internal hardware and keeping it immune to wear and tear. The device doesn?t come with much connection to the desktop, or an external display, so, as John wrote recently, the appeal is mostly in its simplicity and the fact that it doesn?t scream ?nerd device? to all who see you wearing it. More in John?s write up here.
2. Fitbit
Fitbit is another popular wearable activity tracker that, compared to Up, is slightly more favorable in the pricing department at $99. The small, lightweight device clips onto your clothing (and is meant to be worn somewhere on the torso) or fits into an elastic armband when sleeping. It works like a charm, tracking the number of steps one takes each day, the amount of sleep one gets each night (though this is still a bit buggy), is sensitive to movement and offers a look into the number of calories burned each day.?
It displays users? activity in a personal analytics module linked to their Fitbit account, which is made easy to set up through a wireless USB dongle that can be paired with its software in a few minutes. Users can keep the dongle in a USB port of sync it with Fitbit?s new Bluetooth radio functionality. As to the data, users can view their levels of activity in graphs, food and calorie intake, and add in other data, like blood pressure mood, etc. Like Up, it?s also got a silent alarm, and at $99, it?s becoming one of the most popular of these devices. [More in Chris' review here.]
3. Nike+ FuelBand
Nike has been looking to leverage its brand recognition and massive footprint in the sports world to make waves in the fitness-tracking space with its wearable health tracker. The QS bracelet debuted in January 2012, and is now selling for $150 on Nike?s website ? and, giving it a leg up over others beyond what it already had from the Nike brand ? is now selling in the Apple Store across the U.S., Canada and the U.K.?
Reviews of the FuelBand run the gamut, and with the trend seeming to be that, up to this point, it hasn?t been accurate enough to be used in real training and workouts, putting it more in the casual use category as a motivator for workouts and just getting off your butt. It looks great (although not unlike UP), comes with a great mobile app, and tracks whether or not you?re burning calories each day and meeting your basic fitness goals. It?s also started to gain some experimental integrations, like with Path, for example.
Nike also offers similar apps like Nike+ Running and Training Club in its growing arsenal of smartphone fitness motivators.
4. Basis
I say this haltingly, not having spent significant time with it yet, but Basis? new health-tracking wrist watch is probably the one I?m most excited about. The company quickly ran through its first batch after bringing the product to market in November and has since stopped accepting new orders to concentrate on meeting early demand.?
The Basis band is a bit more expensive than the aforementioned gear at $200, and the question, of course, is whether there?s enough going on to justify that higher price. But from the looks of it, there is, especially for the Quantified Self and wristwatch nerds among us. The device comes with an LCD display (sort of like Pebble?s e-ink version) that shows date and time, touch capacitive buttons, a 4-day battery life and Bluetooth support, which will be activated when the company releases its accompanying mobile apps (expected in the near future).
The device is loaded with sensors, which beyond using the accelerometer to measure sleep patterns, include an optical scanner to track blood flow (i.e. heart rate), a perspiration monitor, as well as skin and ambient temperature monitors to measure workout intensity, heat dissipation and so on. On top of that, the company offers a dashboard complete with a host of metrics, which include stuff like calories burned, steps taken, resting heart rate and hours slept and allows users to track their progress and create small, achievable goals to begin establishing healthy habits.
One of the more noteworthy aspects of Basis is that it adjusts to your daily activity (and sleep patterns) automatically, so you don?t have to mess around with different modes and settings. The idea is that it just works in the background, suggesting personalized goals and habits that you can actually meet ? when you want it to. There are still more pieces to add, like integrations with other devices, an API, mobile apps (and of course wider availability), but Basis looks to have a lot going for it ? at least at this early stage. [More in our review here.]
5. Lark
Lark was originally a sleep-monitoring device, app and coaching service that recently expanded beyond sleep to go after the broader, general wellness market. The TechCrunch Disrupt grad now combines, a nighttime and daytime wristband and iOS app to track basic fitness statistics, food eaten, sleep logged, calories burned, distance traveled, and so on. Lark CEO Julia Hu recently told TechCrunch that Lark has sold ?tens of thousands? of devices, and that 73 percent of insomniacs saw an improvement after using Lark Pro for a month. The wristbands are designed by Ammunition ? which also designed the Beats by Dre headphones ? and through its new platform the startup is trying to move beyond its initial, core user base: Athletes.?
The app and wristband combo now offer one-tap diet tracking, which allows users to tap a button to indicate they?re eating, tracking dietary info, stress and productivity data to help users make more informed decisions about their health. The platform offers personalized advice, developed in consultation with its scientific advisors, which include Stanford ?neuroeconomists,? psychologists and sleep experts and so on. The ?Larklife? product, which includes the two wristbands and mobile apps, will sell for $150. Lark looks great and has a lot to offer, but it does have to contend with the fact that others are offering a lot of this functionality in one device ? at competitive prices.
Misfit Wearables? Shine is another elegant-looking activity tracker that isn?t yet available but looks promising.
Amiigo, which, described in our recent coverage, is a ?fitness app and lightweight plastic bracelet (with detachable shoe-clip) that can identify the type of exercise you?re doing and tell you how well you?re doing it as you?re doing it, thanks to a variety of sensors analysing how your body is responding as you run, bike, swim (yes it?s waterproof), or whatever your preferred exercise poison.?
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Source: TechCrunch
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