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Withings, free from Nokia, rebrands and launches Steel HR Sport watch

  • Ron 

After reacquiring itself from Nokia on May 31, 2018, Withings is back with a new look, a strengthened focus on connected health and the first new product under its original brand. Today, it unveiled Steel HR Sport, a multisport hybrid smartwatch that offers heart rate monitoring, connected GPS tracking and Fitness Level analytics – an estimation of VO2 max. The device that boasts an unprecedented 25-day battery life joins the product portfolio of connected health devices that encompass activity trackers, blood pressure monitors, smart scales, thermometers and sleep tracking devices.

Welcome Back Withings

The launch of Steel HR Sport marks a new chapter in the Withings story, which has seen its original cofounder, Eric Carreel, buy back the business he sold to Nokia Technologies in 2016. Four months after officially reacquiring Withings, the brand is back with a new logo and product.

“With its advanced sport and health tracking capabilities, Steel HR Sport is a perfect example of how Withings is delivering against its original mission to help better manage health,” said Eric Carreel, CEO of Withings. “The public reaction to the return of Withings is extraordinary and renews my belief that elegantly designed devices with health tracking abilities can dramaticallyimprove individual and society’s health.”

Steel HR Sport – Designed For Life

With the groundbreaking launch of Activité back in 2014, the first analog watch with activity tracking features, Withings paved the way for all hybrid smartwatches to come. Steel HR Sport continues this tradition with a premium design blended with smart health and sport features for analytics.

Its elegant design features 316L stainless steel and a 40mm case that is water resistant up to 50M (5ATM). Available in both white and black face variants, it is equally eye-catching in sporting or social settings.

The analog face of Steel HR shows the time as well as a sub-dial that shows the percentage of daily activity goals achieved. Goals are set and managed within the Health Mate app. Thedevice’s discrete OLED display shows important health and sports data such as daily steps, calories, distance and heart rate and can be navigated with a push of a button. The display also shows smartphone notifications, which appear automatically along with a discrete vibration.

Workout ready: Multisport, connected GPS & Fitness Level

Steel HR Sport offers dedicated multisport tracking for over 30 different activities from yoga, volleyball and rowing to boxing, skiing and ice hockey. Users select the chosen activity on the watch display to start their workout session. During workout sessions, Steel HR Sport continuously tracks and displays heart rate and the duration of the workout directly on the watch screen. After the session, users can understand the intensity of their workout with heart rate zones and calories spent based on the specific activity selected.

Steel HR Sport is the first product within the Steel HR range to feature GPS connectivity. Once paired with a smartphone, users can track their pace, distance, elevation and map their workouts while walking, running or cycling. Pace, distance and continuous heart rate aredisplayed on the watch face screen and can be tracked live on the user’s phone. After a session, the user’s workout route can also be viewed in the Health Mate app.

The device is the first Withings product to offer Fitness Level assessments of its user. The fitness indicator, called VO2 max, measures the heart and muscles ability to convert oxygen into energy during physical exercise.

The fitter the individual, the higher the VO2 max. Following running sessions, Steel HR Sportcalculates the user’s personal Fitness Level using pace, heart rate and morphological data (age,weight, gender). This fitness metric will help users to optimize their training, increase performance and achieve long-term fitness objectives.

Day and night companion

With an industry leading battery life of 25 days that can be extended for a further 20 days in a power reserve mode, Steel HR Sport is able to track fitness, activity and sleep patterns around the clock.

The device’s tracking ability is not limited to the waking hours. Steel HR Sport is a sophisticatedsleep tracker, detecting length and quality of sleep and providing an overall Sleep Score in the Health Mate app that is based on sleep duration, depth regularity and interruptions. Steel HR Sport has capabilities such as Smart Wake-upTM that will wake users with vibration alarms at the most optimal times during their sleep cycle. The app even offers a Sleep Smarter Program, consisting of eight weeks of recommendations to improve sleep patterns.

During waking hours, Steel HR Sport helps users keep on top of their daily communications. Both Steel HR Sport as well the existing Steel HR product will benefit from enhanced notification capabilities, allowing a multitude of app notifications to be displayed on the digital screen. Previously limited to calls, text messages and events, the Steel HR line is now compatible withnotifications from over 100 apps. Whether it’s flight alerts, breaking news or messages from friends and family on social channels, notifications appear on the watch with a content preview.

Availability

Priced $199.95, Steel HR Sport is available starting September 18, 2018, from www.withings.com, Amazon and selected retailers. It is available in both a white and black face variant with each coming with a grey silicone band. Additional exchangeable wristbands can be purchased exclusively on withings.com.

Steel HR Sport connects with the free Health Mate app, available both on Android and iOS. Health Mate also connects with a range of third party apps such as Apple Health, Google Fit, or MyFitnessPal.

Tags: Amazon, Ambient intelligence, APPLE, cycling, exercise, Google, heart rate, Human–computer interaction, Internet of things, Multisport, performance, Wearable devices, Withings
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