Last year saw the the launch of the Activité smartwatch and activity tracker, but with a price tag of $450 many were left out of the market. Granted, it is a beautiful watch with a calf-skin band and for many “Swiss Made” goes a long ways. Today, the company behind the Activité announced the Activité Pop with a $150 price tag could end up making a mark in the wearables market.
Withings smartwatch features
The watch which is available in three different colors, including a grey, blue and beige tone will go on sale in a limited batch tomorrow on Best Buy’s website. Following that, the Activité Pop (AP) will be widely available in March.
The AP boasts a reported 8-month battery life which will certainly appeal to those uninterested in daily charging. It’s also waterproof so there is little need to remove it until the aforementioned battery needs attention. It is a lovely analog watch with a 36-millimeter-diameter face that also features a third dial in the lower right-hand corner that shows the percentage of your daily fitness goal that has been achieved. Again, this is a simple analog display that shows your goal as a percentage.
The app
In order to see more specific data, you will need to use your smartphone which connects to the watch via Bluetooth. Using Withings’ free Health Mate app, users can track their steps, heart rate, sleep, and other measurements taken by the Activité Pop. Additionally, the AP vibrates for set alarms as well as goal achievement. Presently, the app is only available for iPhones though an Android app release is imminent. Users can also log on to the Withings’ website to track their data.
The watch has real potential as it is both utile and attractive unlike numerous fitness bands that are often cast aside within months of their purchase. “We want the real mass market,” says Withings Chief Executive Cédric Hutchings. “A lot of the things that have been accepted by early adopters are not acceptable by the mass market and ‘the rest of us.'”
