Jawbone set to release sleek, sensor-laden UP fitness tracker

Jawbone will soon unveil a pair of new fitness trackers — one with a low price point and the other with a sleek new design and a heartbeat sensor, a wearables industry source told VentureBeat.

A new report from The Information seems to corroborate our source’s account, saying that the low-cost device will sell for $50 and be called the MOVE. The Information believes the other device will be called the UP3 and come “packed with new sensors.” That device would sell for $180, The Information believes.

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The UP3 would be the third in Jawbone’s line of UP fitness trackers, which now includes $80 UP and the $130 UP24.

Jawbone had already informed media that it would release some new devices this Wednesday, but had not provided details.

As we reported last week, Jawbone is under pressure to add more advanced features like the heartbeat sensor to its higher-priced wearables.

Its competitors are. For example, FitBit just announced two new devices — a fitness tracker and a fitness watch — both with a heartbeat sensor built in.

Over the coming year, heartbeat sensors may become common in fitness trackers, and “table stakes” for the more expensive ones. The heartbeat monitor, working in concert with other sensors, is used to help measure things like sleep quality and calorie burn.

Jawbone’s new $50 MOVE device is a direct response to dropping prices in the wearables market.

The truth is, simple fitness trackers aren’t that expensive to make. Consumer demand is high, but the market is becoming flooded with products. For instance, Xiaomi sells its Mi Band wearable for $13. Misfit recently began selling a new $50 version of its flagship $100 Shine wearable.

We’ll have to wait until later this week to see the new Jawbone devices. But a low-priced model, and one with a heartbeat monitor, are what the market seems to be calling for now.

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