Samsung really wants us to get off the couch to do some kind of exercise, and its latest product to motivate us is the S Band. Oddly, the company hasn’t made any noise about this one, but it has been revealed at a Samsung Roadshow in Germany this week, and additionally put up for pre-order through Amazon.
Hold on, you may be thinking, Samsung already has a fitness tracking band: The Gear Fit. You’re right, it does, but the S Band is considerably more basic than the all-singing Gear Fit. At the end of last year, a report did state Samsung had a basic fitness tracker in the works, and attached the S Band name to it at the time. However, for now, without any solid, Samsung-sourced information to go on, our picture of the S Band has to be built using several recent leaks, plus the details coming from Germany.
A Samsung catalog page showing the S Band was leaked late last week, and stated the little device would count steps, measure distance traveled, note the amount of calories burned, and track sleep patterns. The S Band doesn’t have a display of its own – one of the key differences between it and the Gear Fit – so it relies on Samsung’s S Health 3.0 app installed on your Galaxy smartphone. The only visual aid on the S Band is a run of five, flashing colored LED lights.
The main module can be popped out of the standard watch strap and slipped into a FitBit-style clip to attach to your clothes. Samsung will produce the watch strap in several different colors, according to the leaked catalog. The S Band will also show basic alerts for incoming calls and messages, plus it’ll sound an alarm if it loses Bluetooth contact with the phone.
According to the Amazon Germany pre-order page, the S Band (known here as the Galaxy Activity Tracker) is compatible with devices running Android 4.3 or higher, has a five day battery life, and comes with both the strap and clip included in the box. It’s priced at 80 euros, which converts to around $110. Sadly, there’s no release date listed on the page.
All we can do now is wait for Samsung to confirm the S Band/Activity Tracker’s name, price in other currencies, and a final release date. We’ll keep you updated.
