LAS VEGAS -- Smart gadget company Withings, known for its smart scale and a recent foray into fashionable smart watches, is back with another wearable: an analog timepiece called the Activité Pop.
The device works with an iOS app and offers most of the services you would want from a fitness tracker (it tracks steps taken, calories burned and sleep cycles), but upon first glance, you wouldn't know its power. It looks like a regular watch, but is smarter than most and far more attractive than those with high IQs.
The Pop ($149.95) is an extension of the first model (Withings Activité), which launched in June. The main differences are in color, materials and price; the latest version is more than half the $450 price tag of the original.
Neither Withings watch comes with the technology found in a typical smartwatch (such as notifications and text messages), but considering they are fitness trackers at the core, it makes sense for the company to introduce a more affordable, sportier version of the Activité.
Instead of a leather strap and a sapphire glass display, the Pop comes with a silicone strap in three color options (blue, grey and black) and a PVD-coated (physical vapor deposition) display. Withings said it is working on more playful wristbands to launch in the future.
The Pop features two hand dials, one that points to the time and another that shows a percentage of one's activity goals for the day.. If a user wants to hit 10,000 steps each day, for example, that progress is shown throughout the day; after hitting the goal, the watch slightly vibrates. It can also be programmed to vibrate and wake users up in the morning, so an audible alarm doesn't wake a partner sleeping nearby.
The Pop works alongside the Withings Health Mate app, which houses activity data and gives suggestions to improve lifestyles. It knows when you're swimming or running, so you don't have to set it to a specific mode -- a nice perk that many fitness trackers still don't have.
The device works with other fitness apps too, like RunKeeper, MyFitnessPal and integrates with Apple's HealthKit platform, so users can integrate food logging and GPS route tracking into the Withings app. Battery life is a major plus, too, as it can last up to eight months on one charge.
The Pop will only work with iOS devices when it launches in February, but will eventually be compatible with Android.
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