- Amazon Halo is the company's new health and wellness platform.
- The Halo band costs $ 99.99 while the subscription gives you back $ 3.99 every month.
- It includes a feature called Tone that looks at the sound of your voice to measure how positive you are.
- It can also measure your body fat percentage from a photo.
The already competitive fitness wearable sector is becoming even denser. On Thursday, Amazon announced that it was launching a subscription platform called Halo.
When you pay the platform's monthly fee, you get access to the Amazon Halo app, available on Android and iOS. This works in conjunction with the Halo Band, a barebone activity tracker without a screen. What it has are sensors like an accelerometer, a temperature meter, and a heart rate monitor. You can use the wearable without a subscription, but you won't get access to the advanced features of Halo.
Amazon Halo: what are the features?
One of the features is Tone, a tool that uses the wearable's two built-in microphones to monitor the sound of your voice. Every day the Halo Band temporarily records excerpts from you and analyzes and categorizes these segments into different emotional states. Some of the categories include hopeful, excited, bored, apologetic, happy, and worried. Then, you'll be given tips on how to sound warmer and more positive throughout the day.
Your phone will do all the analysis and you can mute the microphones at any time by pressing and holding a button on the Amazon Halo Band. The wearable does not have an integrated Alexa function. If you don't use the sound feature, the microphones won't be able to do anything.
Halo's other marquee feature is a tool to measure your body fat percentage. You can use the camera on your smartphone to take multiple photos of your body. Amazon's cloud servers then compile a 3D scan that they send back to your phone. The Amazon Halo app then uses a machine learning algorithm to calculate your body fat percentage.
According to Amazon, the body fat percentage says more about a person's general health than about metrics such as weight or body mass index (BMI). The company also claims Halo's method of measuring body fat percentage is as reliable as a medical exam and almost twice as accurate as bioelectrical impedance smart scales. With a slider you can see what your body would look like with less or more fat.
Other properties
Aside from these features, the Amazon Halo Band is what you'd expect from a fitness wearable in 2020, but Amazon has tried to learn the basics in a unique way. The Halo Band includes activity tracking, but instead of just counting your steps, you will be awarded points. You will earn more if you do more strenuous activities.
For example, a run is worth more than a relaxing walk. On the other hand, if you spend too much time sitting around you will lose points. It also comes with sleep tracking. Every morning the app rates your previous night's sleep on a scale of 100.
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Amazon also works with companies like Headspace and organizations like the Mayo Clinic to offer challenges and workouts called Labs. The idea behind this is to help users find healthy habits that work for them. The company announces that it will keep adding new Labs content and providers.
But what about Amazon Halo's privacy?
When it comes to privacy, Amazon says that all of your data is encrypted in transit and in the cloud. The company lets you download and delete your data at any time. The platform will delete both your body scans and voice samples after the analysis is complete.
Amazon Halo is currently available to people in the US who sign up to test the platform. Once generally available, the Halo Band will cost $ 99.99, while the associated monthly subscription will refund you $ 3.99 after a six-month trial period. Those entering the early access program can get the wearable for $ 64.99. At the start, Amazon will sell the Halo Band in three different color combinations: black and oynx, blush and rose gold, as well as winter and silver. The company also plans to sell additional fabric and silicone ribbons in different colors.
