Amazon is rolling out Amazon Halo, described as "a new service dedicated to helping customers improve their individual health and wellness. Amazon Halo combines a suite of AI-powered health features that provide actionable insights into overall wellness via the new Amazon Halo app with the Amazon Halo Band, which uses multiple advanced sensors to provide the highly accurate information necessary to power Halo insights. Customers in the U.S. can request early access to Amazon Halo starting today, with the Amazon Halo Band and 6 months of Halo membership available for a special price of $64.99."
The regular price will be $99.99, with membership automatically renewing for $3.99 a month after the initial six months.
The company says that the Halo app will focus on core features that include activity, sleep, body fat percentage, and emotional well-being.
Key to the system is the Halo Band: "Amazon Halo Band is purpose-built to focus on your health and wellness - unlike smartwatches and fitness trackers, it doesn’t have a screen or constant notifications," Amazon says. "The small sensor capsule delivers highly accurate data, and includes an accelerometer, a temperature sensor, a heart rate monitor, two microphones, an LED indicator light, and a button to turn the microphones on or off, among other functions. Amazon Halo Band is water resistant for all-day wear and the comfortable fit means it won’t snag or irritate at night. Plus, the battery lasts up to seven days and fully charges in under 90 minutes. Customers can choose from three fabric band colors at purchase, with fabric and silicone sport accessory bands available in 15 additional colors."
The Wall Street Journal writes that as a way of addressing privacy concerns, "Amazon said it encrypts users’ health data in transit and in the cloud, and body-scan images are removed from the cloud after processing. Speech samples used to analyze a user’s voice will also be deleted after processing, the company said."
- KC's View:
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This seems right in line with Amazon's strategy - be part of as much of people's lives as possible, enabling them to live their best lives in every way possible.
Prime makes it possible for me to get fast shipping on almost everything. Subscribe & Save allows me not to even order stuff that I use regularly - it just comes - which saves me time. And now, if I have Halo, I can track how all the jogging I'm doing in the time that I'm not shopping is paying off for me.
I'm the only one in my family who doesn't wear a Fitbit, and I have to admit to being a little leery about having all this information being tracked. Amazon knows a ton about me, heaven knows, and I'm not sure I need to give them more information.
I'll have to think about this one.
