Hollow application and band
Source: Amazon
Amazon’s Health and Fitness Monitor is now available for purchase to anyone.
The Hollow band costs 99.99, provides access to the Hollow app and comes with a six-month subscription to health services. Amazon launched the device in August as part of its “Day 1” line of products, but it was only available to consumers on an invitation-only basis.
The device competes with devices from the Apple Watch and Fitbit. Amazon Hollow is designed to provide users with a comprehensive overview of their personal health and wellness by combining a tool that monitors a user’s emotional state by listening to their body fat percentage, activity levels, sleep and the tone of their voice.
Initial reviews were not positive. For example, the Washington Post recently said that “Hollow collects the most intimate information we’ve ever seen from a consumer health gadget – and makes the least of it.”
Amazon says it has introduced upgrades to Hollow based on feedback from users only on the invitation. They have a new feature called intelligence, which shows trends or patterns based on users’ activities and sleep, as well as “positive and energy peaks” in their voice.
It also publishes required exercises from a range of popular fitness brands such as Orangethory Fitness, Optive and OpenFit.
Hollow marks Amazon’s first trip to the fitness wearable market. Its hardware business has traditionally focused on in-devices, such as its Echo smart speakers and Fire TV streaming video devices.
It was widely expected that Amazon would be preparing to enter the wearable market over the years. When customers don’t engage with Amazon’s website, wearables provide another entry point for the company.