In a recent report on Forbes, Microsoft is poised launch its own wearables soon in the form of a fitness band. Microsoft’s own wearable is set to be released just in time for the holiday season, a timeline which Apple was reportedly eyeing to release its smartwatch but was delayed to 2015 instead.
Although Microsoft’s fitness band will have a number of smartwatch features, the band will mainly cater to the fitness crowd. It is also being reported that the device will have a battery life of two days; a substantial boost over the competition from Samsung and Motorola, both of which produce smartwatches that need to be charged at least once a day. Although it would fall short of the battery life available to dedicated fitnesss bands. This may indicate more smartwatch features than Microsoft is comfortable to admit at this time.
The fitness band will also ship with cross platform support that includes Windows Phone 8.1, iOS, and Android. Catering to a wide range of operating systems may be the only way that Microsoft stands a chance in the increasingly competitive wearable market. Windows Phone commands a very small market share, and making it a dedicated peripheral to Microsoft devices may hinder any sort of adoption.
Microsoft’s foray into wearables comes as a massive surprise as there has been no prior indication that the company was even close to releasing anything; despite earlier patent filings back in July. There is still no hint of what Redmond will be releasing, and all we can do is wait for more news.
[Source: Forbes. Images: Mashable, IBTimes UK]
