Rumors are the lifeblood of the tech industry. They spur imagination, build hope, and keep and ordinarily dry industry interesting.
Microsoft Band 2 has only been on the market a little over 3 months, yet the rumors are already starting to swirl for Microsoft Band 3. What features could Microsoft include in the 3rd iteration of its fitness armband?
From my perspective, it may not be as fun as proliferating rumor as fact, but there’s a lot to be said about going to the source for potential Band 3 features. The source is, of course, UserVoice for Microsoft Health and Microsoft Band. At UserVoice, there’s a number of features that have been proposed that can actually be experienced without a new Band version (can be supplied to Band 2 with a firmware update), so I’m sure we may see those long before a new Band (rumored to release in October 2016). However, one big feature ask is waterproofing for swimming and showering which can only be delivered with new hardware.
Here’s the current top 10:
- Make the Band waterproof (for swimming/showering)
- Export GPS tracks into GPX or TCX format files (to import into other fitness services)
- Get an alert if heart rate goes outside of target zone
- Band version trade-in program (for Band 1 to Band 2 owners, however, I’d like to see a trade-in program for those that actually lose weight using Band and need a smaller size)
- Manual input for calorie and water intake, and weight changes
- Medical Emergency ID tile
- Fitbit integration
- Show battery percentage on Band screen
- Tile specific for Hiking and Walking
- Water drink reminder
Have some suggestions of your own? Keep the Microsoft Health and Microsoft Band UserVoice link handy: Microsoft Health and Microsoft Band on UserVoice
Want some of the already proposed features yourself? Drop out to UserVoice and vote them up.
