Peloton is working on a digital heart-rate armband, according to Bloomberg. This would be the company’s biggest move beyond stationary fitness equipment into the competitive wearables market.
Reportedly, the basic contours of the Peloton Heart Rate Band are buried deep inside the code of the company’s iPhone and iPad app. Details suggest that it will come in small and large sizes and will pair with Peloton’s bike and treadmills — along with phones, tablets and televisions running the company’s app.
The heart-rate band will be used to capture the intensity of workouts, providing users with more accurate data. It won’t be a smartwatch and will rather come with a small screen that displays the battery level and when it’s in pairing mode.
The code also suggests that the band would be open to further software updates, allowing the company to add features down the road. The band will work with Peloton’s heart-rate zones, which provide users feedback on workouts of varying intensity. It will also automatically go into sleep mode when removed.
Peloton shares jumped on the news and were up 7.4% at 12:11 p.m. in New York.
It is unclear when or even whether Peloton will actually launch its band. What we do know is that the company already sells a $49 gadget that users can strap to their chests, and last year it became possible for users to track their heart rate via the Apple Watch.
Also, we know that Peloton has acquired Atlas Wearables and that it obviously has the technology to pull this off.
We’ll be watching for this space and let you know as soon as we hear something new. Stay tuned…