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Nike Introduces New FuelBand SE With Bluetooth 4.0, Movement Reminders, and a Clock

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Apr 12, 2001
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Nike today introduced a new fitness tracking bracelet, the Nike+ FuelBand SE. The new band looks nearly identical to the prior FuelBand, but with the addition of some color accents -- yellow, pink and red -- as well as a number of new features.

The biggest technical upgrade is the addition of Bluetooth 4.0, otherwise known as Bluetooth LE. The Bluetooth tech has been built into every iPhone since the 4S and allows for low-power and low-latency data transfer. It also takes advantage of the M7 motion coprocessor in the new iPhone 5s.

The new FuelBand also has a new clock mode that can show the time at the touch of a button.

fuelbandse.png
Other improvements have come to the Nike+ Fuel points system, allowing the band to track more activities and not track activities that aren't actually physical activity.
The company has added hourly reminders asking you to move around for five minutes, in case you're too stagnant too long. You can also now double tap on the device to show the current time, resolving an odd omission from the last model. The app has also been improved, and now has a curve graph that encourages people to move every hour. There's now an intensity level that shows points as users are working out or doing some other physical activity -- you can name these sessions, and share what you were doing with friends.
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The FuelBand SE will launch November 6th for $149, only for iOS. Apple CEO Tim Cook is on Nike's board of directors.

Article Link: Nike Introduces New FuelBand SE With Bluetooth 4.0, Movement Reminders, and a Clock
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2013/10/15/nike-introduces-new-fuelband-se-with-bluetooth-4-0-movement-reminders-and-a-clock/
As a FuelBand user, I'm not particularly impressed by this update.

After 2 years, a few new colours and Bluetooth 4.0 doesn't strike me as anything radical.

May look into the Fitbit Force.
 
JaySoul said:
As a FuelBand user, I'm not particularly impressed by this update.

After 2 years, a few new colours and Bluetooth 4.0 doesn't strike me as anything radical.

May look into the Fitbit Force.
Click to expand...

as a potential first time fuel band buyer, i think NIKE is missing out on the opportunity to break into the smart watch field, i would love to see this with some notification function.
 
i was waiting a long time for an update to this fuel band and it is underwhelming to say the least. I was hoping for a heart rate monitor to be integrated...I must wait longer now. Pretty craptacular of an update Nike...following Apple's footsteps.
 
imaginex20 said:
i was waiting a long time for an update to this fuel band and it is underwhelming to say the least. I was hoping for a heart rate monitor to be integrated...I must wait longer now. Pretty craptacular of an update Nike...following Apple's footsteps.
Click to expand...

I feel the same way. This is very disappointing.
 
I'm kind of a newb when it comes to these fitness trackers. What kind of functionality does BT 4.0 add?

Does the M7 processor in the iPhone 5S add better functionality to the Nike+ Fuelband app?
 
How is the clock feature new, my FuelBand has shown the time ever since I bought it?
 
I bought my Nike Fuelband over a year ago. It tells time just as well today as it did the first day I bought it. The Fuelband has always been able to display the time.
 
pnoyblazed said:
I got mine as a gift so paying $149+tax is surely not justified.. truly gimmicky at best
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I received one as a gift, too, but returned it because I anticipated this one to be significantly better. Sadly, this is not the case. Now I still have no Fuelband and am stuck contemplating if this is worth $149.
 
tgi said:
I'm kind of a newb when it comes to these fitness trackers. What kind of functionality does BT 4.0 add?

Does the M7 processor in the iPhone 5S add better functionality to the Nike+ Fuelband app?
Click to expand...

I want to know that too. Seems like it could work out a lot of the kinks of the data by comparing the two.
 
Any word on a vibration alarm? I didn't see anything specifically mentioning it so I'm not holding my breath. I like the Nike+ ecosystem (if you want to call it that) but I think unless/until Apple puts something out that ties in with iOS the only thing I "need" in one of these bands is the alarm... otherwise the fitness tracking appears to be comparable amongst all of the options.
 
tgi said:
I'm kind of a newb when it comes to these fitness trackers. What kind of functionality does BT 4.0 add?

Does the M7 processor in the iPhone 5S add better functionality to the Nike+ Fuelband app?
Click to expand...

Bt 4.0 is a massive improvement as it dramatically lowers power consumption. I don't see a mention of the fb2 being waterproof either which it is!!
 
I think Tim is making sure this doesn't get too many features because Apple will come out with an iWatch with those features.
 
marwal said:
How is the clock feature new, my FuelBand has shown the time ever since I bought it?
Click to expand...

I just checked because I thought maybe I made that up. Nope. One click 1:18pm

----------

BT 4.0 seems cool, but honestly my current Fuel goes a whole week without a charge, so not totally necessary.

But it seems they say it will now also measure intensity and frequency of movement into the Fuel score rather than just absolute movement. That could help since it registers pretty low when you do something like use a elliptical machine.
 
I've had a Fuelband for since May 2012 and followed the cnet liveblog on today's announcement, so I can address a few of the comments.

Re: time - the new part is that you can hit the button twice and then it will immediately display the time. Before, you had to cycle through all the different readouts (unless Time was the last thing you had looked at) until you got to the Time readout. I love this change - the old way was so annoying that I only have my Fuelband display Time and Fuel, not steps or calories, because I hated having to cycle through so many pieces of info when I only wanted to know the time.

Re: comparison to iphone5s M7 chip - I also have a 5S; we know part of the answer to this but not all, since the Nike+ Move app hasn't been released yet. If the Move app works well, the 5S should work equally as well as the fuel band and maybe even better, since it should be able to measure movements that the Fuelband on your wrist wouldn't be able to. However, my biggest source of NikeFuel is from running or playing basketball and soccer, and I wouldn't have my phone on me for any of those activities, so this is where the Fuelband shines.

All that said, I was disappointed by the announcement today too - really would have loved to have seen the vibrating alarm function. Hopefully Apple will announce the iWatch a week from today so we can see how that compares.
 
verniesgarden said:
as a potential first time fuel band buyer, i think NIKE is missing out on the opportunity to break into the smart watch field, i would love to see this with some notification function.
Click to expand...

I use a Fitbit Flex and like it, but am interested in Nike's band, as well. I do want to try the Fitbit Force, I like the new design having a closed back and the time, and definitely interested in the iOS 7 integration with it. Does the Fuelband track sleep like the Fitbit? Also, what is the average battery life of the Fuelband?
 
Agreed, I was anticipating more. I've held off buying one of these things for a while as the Fitbit flex didn't have a clock and the FuelBand was due for an upgrade. Sure the M7 coproc in the 5s is nice but I don't take my phone running (I use a Garmin 610) and don't carry my phone with me everywhere I go at work or at home.

Now to compare the new Nike+ with the new Fitbit Force. I didn't like the fiddly way you had to charge the Flex; custom charge cable and fishing the module out of the band seemed very awkward. Nike's charge method is cleaner if you travel a lot (assuming they didn't change it with the SE)
 
JaySoul said:
As a FuelBand user, I'm not particularly impressed by this update.

After 2 years, a few new colours and Bluetooth 4.0 doesn't strike me as anything radical.

May look into the Fitbit Force.
Click to expand...

I agree. I was hoping they'd add vibrations for waking up and sleeping pattern stuff.

I'll stick with what I have.
 
Goodbye Jawbone UP! I loved you and we had a great time. But you have let me down. I am giving up on you like you are giving up on your battery every two months. I will trust Nike to release a product that is ready to be released and not a peace of junk.
 
SBlue1 said:
Goodbye Jawbone UP! I loved you and we had a great time. But you have let me down. I am giving up on you like you are giving up on your battery every two months. I will trust Nike to release a product that is ready to be released and not a peace of junk.
Click to expand...

Same here and good timing because I just sold my Jawbone UP like a week ago. However, I might have to wait a little longer and see how Apple is gonna do with an iWatch.
 
bbeagle said:
Take the wristband, tape it to your hamster wheel, and let the hamster generate tons of Nike Points all day while you play video games.
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Haha, that's what I"m doing right now! And as a bonus, my hamster is in the best shape of his freaking life. :)
 
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