Microsoft Band on-arm 2014-12 (16044001142)

Microsoft Band is a discontinued

smart band Smart or SMART may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Smart'' (Hey! Say! JUMP album), 2014 * Smart (Hotels.com), former mascot of Hotels.com * ''Smart'' (Sleeper album), 1995 debut album by Sleeper * ''SMart'', a children's television ser ...

with

smartwatch A smartwatch is a wearable computer in the form of a watch; modern smartwatches provide a local touchscreen interface for daily use, while an associated smartphone app provides management and telemetry, such as long-term biomonitoring. While ea ...

and

activity tracker An activity tracker, also known as a fitness tracker, is a device or application for monitoring and tracking fitness-related metrics such as distance walked or run, calorie consumption, and in some cases heartbeat. It is a type of wearable comp ...

fitness tracker An activity tracker, also known as a fitness tracker, is a device or application for monitoring and tracking Physical fitness, fitness-related metrics such as distance walked or run, calorie consumption, and in some cases heartbeat. It is a type ...

features, created and developed by

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

. It was announced on October 29, 2014. The Microsoft Band incorporates fitness tracking and health-oriented capabilities and integrated with

Windows Phone Windows Phone (WP) is a discontinued family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones as the replacement successor to Windows Mobile and Zune. Windows Phone featured a new user interface derived from the Metro design la ...

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...

, and Android smartphones through a

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limi ...

connection. On October 3, 2016, Microsoft stopped sales and development of the line of devices. On May 31, 2019, the Band's companion app was decommissioned, and Microsoft offered a refund for customers who were lifelong active platform users.

History

The Microsoft Band was announced by Microsoft on October 29, 2014 and released in limited quantities in the US the following day. The Band was initially sold exclusively on the

Microsoft Store Microsoft Store (formerly known as Windows Store) is a digital distribution platform operated by Microsoft. It started as an app store for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 as the primary means of distributing Universal Windows Platform apps ...

's website and retail locations; due to its unexpected popularity, it sold out on the first day it was released and was in short supply over the 2014

holiday shopping season The Christmas season or the festive season (also known in some countries as the holiday season or the holidays) is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and other countries that is generally considered to run from late November ...

. Production was ramped up in March 2015 to increase availability, several months after the release of

Android Wear Wear OS (also known simply as Wear and formerly Android Wear) is a version of Google's Android operating system designed for smartwatches and other wearables. By pairing with mobile phones running Android version 6.0 "Marshmallow" or newer, or ...

but ahead of the

Apple Watch Apple Watch is a line of smartwatches produced by Apple Inc. It incorporates fitness tracking, health-oriented capabilities, and wireless telecommunication, and integrates with iOS and other Apple products and services. The Apple Watch was rel ...

. Availability was expanded in the US to include retailers

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

Best Buy Best Buy Co. Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was rebra ...

, and

Target Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, fi ...

. On April 15, 2015, the Microsoft Band was released in the UK priced at £169.99 and available for purchase through the Microsoft Store, or from select partners.

Features

The Microsoft band incorporates ten

sensor A sensor is a device that produces an output signal for the purpose of sensing a physical phenomenon. In the broadest definition, a sensor is a device, module, machine, or subsystem that detects events or changes in its environment and sends ...

s, though only eight were documented on Microsoft's product page: # Optical

heart rate monitor A heart rate monitor (HRM) is a personal monitoring device that allows one to measure/display heart rate in real time or record the heart rate for later study. It is largely used to gather heart rate data while performing various types of phy ...

# Three-axis

accelerometer An accelerometer is a tool that measures proper acceleration. Proper acceleration is the acceleration (the rate of change of velocity) of a body in its own instantaneous rest frame; this is different from coordinate acceleration, which is accele ...

# Gyrometer #

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...

Microphone A microphone, colloquially called a mic or mike (), is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and public ...

Ambient light sensor An ambient light sensor is a component in smartphones, notebooks, other mobile devices, automotive displays and LCD TVs. It is a photodetector that is used to sense the amount of ambient light present, and appropriately dim the device's screen to ...

Galvanic skin response Electrodermal activity (EDA) is the property of the human body that causes continuous variation in the electrical characteristics of the skin. Historically, EDA has also been known as skin conductance, galvanic skin response (GSR), electrodermal ...

sensors # UV sensor # Skin temperature sensor # Capacitive sensor The Band's

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

was designed to run for two days on a full charge, and the device partially relies on its companion app

Microsoft Health Microsoft Band is a discontinued smart band with smartwatch and activity tracker/ fitness tracker features, created and developed by Microsoft. It was announced on October 29, 2014. The Microsoft Band incorporates fitness tracking and health-or ...

, which was available for operating systems beginning with

Windows Phone 8.1 Windows Phone 8.1 is the discontinued third generation of Microsoft's Windows Phone mobile operating system, succeeding Windows Phone 8. Rolled out at Microsoft's Build Conference in San Francisco, California, on April 2, 2014, it was released ...

, Android 4.3+, and iOS 7.1+, if

was available. Despite being designed as a fitness tracker, the Band has numerous

-like features, such as built in apps (called

tiles Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, or o ...

) like

Exercise Exercise is a body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. It is performed for various reasons, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone athletic ...

, UV,

Alarm An alarm device is a mechanism that gives an audible, visual or other kind of alarm signal to alert someone to a problem or condition that requires urgent attention. Alphabetical musical instruments Etymology The word ''alarm'' comes from th ...

Timer A timer is a specialized type of clock used for measuring specific time intervals. Timers can be categorized into two main types. The word "timer" is usually reserved for devices that counts down from a specified time interval, while devices th ...

, Calls, Messages,

Calendar A calendar is a system of organizing days. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months and years. A date is the designation of a single and specific day within such a system. A calendar is also a physi ...

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

Weather Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmosphere, the ...

and more. The Band worked with any

device. If paired with a device running Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1, Cortana might also be available, although some features still require direct use of the paired phone. This Update 1 was included with the

Lumia Denim Microsoft Lumia (previously the Nokia Lumia) is a discontinued line of mobile devices that was originally designed and marketed by Nokia and later by Microsoft Mobile. Introduced in November 2011, the line was the result of a long-term partnersh ...

firmware for

Microsoft Lumia Microsoft Lumia (previously the Nokia Lumia) is a discontinued line of mobile devices that was originally designed and marketed by Nokia and later by Microsoft Mobile. Introduced in November 2011, the line was the result of a long-term partnersh ...

phones. Users can view their latest

notifications Notification may refer to: * Notification (Holy See), an announcement by a department of the Roman Curia *Casualty notification, the process of notifying relatives of people who have been killed or seriously injured * Death notification, the proc ...

on their phone by using the Notifications Center Tile. The device functioned as a way to promote

Microsoft software Microsoft is a developer of personal computer software. It is best known for its Windows operating system, the Internet Explorer and subsequent Microsoft Edge web browsers, the Microsoft Office family of productivity software plus services, and ...

and license it to developers and

OEMs An original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is generally perceived as a company that produces non-aftermarket parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. It is a common industry term recognized and used by many professional or ...

References

External links

* * {{Smartwatch Microsoft hardware Products introduced in 2014 Discontinued Microsoft products Smartwatches Smart bands

History

Features

See also

References

External links