Microsoft BAND2 – Imminent

I really liked the first Microsoft BAND. Other than a screen that was a bit susceptible to scratches, I didn’t reckon there was that much wrong with it. Certainly it was better than so much of the other dross out there pretending to be ‘smart’.

In their infinite wisdom Gates et al at Microsoft are announcing a new improved BAND2 on October 9th.

The first earthshattering reveal is that it will be called the “Microsoft BAND2”. That’s a bit of a scoop for this site as we seem to have been one of the few who’ve properly read the background text on the images ‘leaked’ by MicorosoftInsider 😉 (Hint: the images were really all released by Microsoft).

What can be assumed is that it will be ‘better’. Little can be predicted from the images. However the little that can be gleaned from the images is:

1. There will be a curved screen – fair enough. I liked the old ‘flat’ one; others wanted a curved one. There were more others out there than me. I lost.
2. There is a move away from the more plastic feel by the addition of, for example, metal strips down the side of the display
3. The optical sensor technology appears to have been replaced

One speculation is that the BAND2 will contain a “galvanic skin response device” which is able to measure blood sugar levels – this is handy for medical and sports usage.

I could speculate further but would really only be guessing. So let’s wait until the next ‘leak’ of some more images or a spec.

The UK price for the original band has only fallen £20 to about £150 – suggesting either high volume sales or low margins. I suspect the latter. Even at the higher price it compared very well to almost everything out there that had the same quality of features (GPS + HR + sleep + battery etc). So we can probably guess that last year’s old version will plummet below £100 in the New Year sales once production of the new one is fully maxxed out and xmas demand has come and gone.

I would imagine that the new one will be similarly priced to the old as Microsoft are a volume business. Perhaps al little higher up to GBP200. We’ll see.

I still like the original one