Microsoft Band Back in Stores, Will Hit Best Buy Stores Before Apple Watch April 24 Release
In an apparent bid to counter Apple's possible domination of the wearable tech market with the upcoming release of the Apple Watch, Microsoft has re-stocked supplies of its Microsoft Band in its online store.
According to a report in Ultracis, some online shoppers who signed up in Microsoft's online store received notifications via email that the Microsoft Band is available for purchase. The online store itself does not show stock availability so it seems that only those who have previously signed up were sent notices that they could now buy the $199 band.
The Microsoft Band has been recently out of stock in the Microsoft Store, but some reports are saying that this move of Microsoft is governed by the company's awareness of Apple's possible effect on the market, according to a report in Windows Central.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The Windows Central report, however, also posits that the Microsoft Band has the likelihood to compete with the Apple Watch because of several factors.
The Microsoft band is not a watch. It is a fitness band that is "designed to monitor a user's health and activities throughout the day and serve as a portal to Microsoft's intelligent cloud-based Health platform." Aside from being a health accessory, it can also serve as "a window to the user's primary device," performing such functions as notifications, phone calls and messages that can be performed by a smartwatch. The band's biggest advantage is its battery life – it is said to last two full days without charging and it can be charged quickly (from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours).
The Apple Watch on the other hand, in full function, can possibly last for just a day and needs 4 to 5 hours for a full charge.
On other factor cited by the report is the fact that the wearable technology market is still uncharted territory because it is relatively new. Its view is that Apple's foray into the market is risky because of the high price tag of its product. Microsoft Band's price point is low enough for it to cater to low-end markets. It also has a very specific function that it performs which is health monitoring.
Watches in general have gone out of vogue, which does not bode well for watches that are coming out in the market unless they offer something more in terms of function.
