No MS Band 3.0 for 2016?

[ven07]

We're nearing the halfway point of 2016. Build is behind us and we now know that MS won't be pushing any new hardware this year. Their plan is to take the market by storm in 2017 (that's the plan anyways).

However so far this year, there have been no rumors about the next generation for the band.

So will MS be postponing it as well? are the current band owners "OK" with that? Does this possibly mean that the next one might run a version of W10? And what do they need to improve/add?

Would like to hear (I mean read) your opinions :angel:

 

[Brian Gobrecht]

We won't know till about end of July/September or September/October. That's when it seems when they announce it from previous years. I have been hearing rumors they won't be pushing a new one out till 2017

 

[ven07]

We won't know till about end of July/September or September/October. That's when it seems when they announce it from previous years. I have been hearing rumors they won't be pushing a new one out till 2017

Ya I know I'm a tad to early but at this point we had some rumors and indications of what it could look like and what it might offer. This year however, it has been eerily quiet.

Wondering if the price will drop some more as compensation lol

 

[buzzard75]

Guess I'll be looking for an alternative elsewhere then. My current MB1 is falling apart and Microsoft won't honor the warranty and wants me to pay $130 to get it replaced. I could buy a new MB2 for $175-200, if I catch it on sale. But I don't even want one of those because of all the quality issues THEY have. I love the functionality of the MB1, but with all the corrosion on it, the loose battery covers, and the peeled battery cover coating, I'm to the point now where I'm almost afraid to wear it. If anyone has any recommendations for another wearable with all the same functionality, I'm all ears.

 

[anon(5327127)]

I had my band 1, for a year, before moving to the Band 2. Neither has presented issues so I'm often baffled how these things happen.

In all honesty the Band 3 had better be bullet proof as people seem to destroy them.

 

[nmercy]

At this point it's a 50/50 shot of whether the Band 3 will be this year or next year. The 1 and 2 released late enough in the year that, should they release it at that time it could be the first device of their 2017 push.

I'm also on the fence about whether or not I personally want to see a Band 3 this year. I skipped out on the Band 2 as I can't see spending $200+ every year for an accessory and I still had the replacement left on my complete care. I did think they would support the Band 1 better as there are features it should be able to support that the Band 2 does (music control, UV sensor readings, etc...), but they didn't enable them on the Band 1 to try and get you to buy a Band 2.

The other reason I'm on the fence is I'm on Verizon, and unless new phones are released in the next year or so, I'll probably be switching to either Android or iOS. Not because I don't like Windows 10, but because of a lack of a device.

Granted I would still be considering other smart/fitness devices like Fitbit as the software is better in the regards to how I use it... yes the deep insight of Health is nice, but it would be nicer to keep track of calories in it.

 

[ven07]

At this point it's a 50/50 shot of whether the Band 3 will be this year or next year. The 1 and 2 released late enough in the year that, should they release it at that time it could be the first device of their 2017 push.

I'm also on the fence about whether or not I personally want to see a Band 3 this year. I skipped out on the Band 2 as I can't see spending $200+ every year for an accessory and I still had the replacement left on my complete care. I did think they would support the Band 1 better as there are features it should be able to support that the Band 2 does (music control, UV sensor readings, etc...), but they didn't enable them on the Band 1 to try and get you to buy a Band 2.

The other reason I'm on the fence is I'm on Verizon, and unless new phones are released in the next year or so, I'll probably be switching to either Android or iOS. Not because I don't like Windows 10, but because of a lack of a device.

Granted I would still be considering other smart/fitness devices like Fitbit as the software is better in the regards to how I use it... yes the deep insight of Health is nice, but it would be nicer to keep track of calories in it.

Valid point with the 2017 push! I was also bummed when certain features weren't pushed to the MB1 but I understood it as a business move. Nonetheless they should probably still push new features to the MB1 if there really won't be any replacements this year.

Someone else once said "the MB2 is for the newbies, there really isn't much for MB1 owners to upgrade for". I agreed with that sentiment, especially given the price lol

 

[ven07]

Guess I'll be looking for an alternative elsewhere then. My current MB1 is falling apart and Microsoft won't honor the warranty and wants me to pay $130 to get it replaced. I could buy a new MB2 for $175-200, if I catch it on sale. But I don't even want one of those because of all the quality issues THEY have. I love the functionality of the MB1, but with all the corrosion on it, the loose battery covers, and the peeled battery cover coating, I'm to the point now where I'm almost afraid to wear it. If anyone has any recommendations for another wearable with all the same functionality, I'm all ears.

There was a nice deal in the market for a MB1 and charging stand The seller has removed it from the WC marketplace though.It's now on eBay and swappa so if you're interested, shoot him a PM (rumorednow)

 

[DroidUser42]

At this point it's a 50/50 shot of whether the Band 3 will be this year or next year. The 1 and 2 released late enough in the year that, should they release it at that time it could be the first device of their 2017 push.

Maybe, if they count years like new car models. It seems odd they'd release in November and sit out the Christmas rush to hold off advertising until 2017.

 

[Brian Gobrecht]

well since the band 2 is on par with if not more advanced than the average fitbit I don't see another band coming out till 2017 to find smaller better components and such. keep in mind the band is not a smartwatch it doesn't have internet or wifi it's a fitness band that gets notifications via bluetooth from the actual microsoft health app. It gives you a glimpse of what is happening in short bursts or it would wear out the battery like the Apple Watch (less than 8hrs if i can recall). They don't want to provide earnings reports like other products which should tell you something to me thats a big red flag they don't want you to see its selling badly. So thinking the band is a smartwatch and getting home to find it's actually not will create hard feelings and false hope .

 

[DeNachtwacht]

Personally I think this year there's plenty of improvement that can be done on the software side for the Band. The device is packed with sensors that almost no user actually uses because there are no apps for it. And besides that, the Band OS can also be improved a lot too, inclusing the Microsoft Health App.

With the tougher Band 2's that have been created the last couple of month I personally don't see much need for hardware improvements. The only thing you'd really benefit from is a waterproof band, so it will be possible to use it for water sports. But on the other hand; also in this case they'd first develop a good swimming mode on the software side.

Bottom line; what do you need a Band 3 for when there's so much room for software improvements that they can add to the Band 2. For me, they first need to squeeze everything software-wise out of my Band 2, before they will make me consider buying a Band 3.

 

[DroidUser42]

Bottom line; what do you need a Band 3 for when there's so much room for software improvements that they can add to the Band 2.

It's a rapidly evolving market. They might be able to wait a few months, but I don't think they can wait a year.

 

[Brian Gobrecht]

The band does not have an "OS" it is firmware or you would be able to update it straight from the band itself. Since it only communicates via bluetooth via the MS Health app it again is a fitness tracker. If you keep saying it has an OS you are wrong. People get the wrong idea i'm if you say it has a OS and relate it to a phone or a PC and it's 100% not sorry. (i've Seen it happen before)

There won't be "apps for it because its a fitness tracker. there will be connected apps which run off of the Microsoft Health app but that's syncing data the band has communicated to the Health app

To do a waterproofing you need to get it at IP67 with a depth rating in meters. and nothing is waterproof water resistant yes. The band 1 and 2 both have holes and can't do that. It is rated for washing hands and the occasional splash of water or getting rained on but i wouldn't go farther than that.

 

[11B1P]

However so far this year, there have been no rumors about the next generation for the band.

So will MS be postponing it as well? are the current band owners "OK" with that?
Would like to hear (I mean read) your opinions

I'm fine with no new Band 3. My Band 2 works just fine.

...because of all the quality issues THEY have.

This is totally different from user to user. My B2 and my wife's B2 have no issues at all. We've had them since before Christmas and THEY are holding up just fine.

 

[Brian Gobrecht]

I'm with 11B1P I've had mine since around November

 

[DeNachtwacht]

To do a waterproofing you need to get it at IP67 with a depth rating in meters. and nothing is waterproof water resistant yes. The band 1 and 2 both have holes and can't do that. It is rated for washing hands and the occasional splash of water or getting rained on but i wouldn't go farther than that.

First: the Band 2 already is IP67 certified.
Second: the Garmin VivoActive HR is a waterproof, swimming enabled smartwatch which is therefore a direct competitor to the Band 2, so therefore in the long run a completely waterproof Band is really necessary.

 

[driedl]

First: the Band 2 already is IP67 certified.
Second: the Garmin VivoActive HR is a waterproof, swimming enabled smartwatch which is therefore a direct competitor to the Band 2, so therefore in the long run a completely waterproof Band is really necessary.

Agreed. I just got my VivoActive HR and it's much more powerful (and, yes, bigger and more complicated) than the Band 2. It's also designed for swimming which I think is what we really care about more than the IP rating. For MS to not release a durable, swim-ready Band 3 in time for the holidays this year would strike me as giving up on the form factor. I went through three Band 1s and was on my third Band 2 when I jumped ship this week. I was happy with MS customer service in replacing them, but it still seemed unreasonable to have such glaring durability problems. It seems to me that MS is hanging on to a tiny sliver of the market and they need to innovate quickly on the hardware and software side if they're going to become relevant.

 

[buzzard75]

I'm looking for an MB1 replacement. Obviously the Garmin Vivoactive HR is leaps and bounds ahead of the MB1. Granted, the Vivoactive HR is very heavily activity oriented, but do the Smart Notifications work with Windows Phone? I currently have 8.1, but I plan to update to 10 at some point. My phone is on the list, it's just a matter of when/if my cell provider decides to support the OTA update. I guess my real question is, what works and what doesn't work with Windows Phone? What works with 10, but doesn't with 8.1 and vice versa? I know you may not be able to answer all these questions personally, but I don't know where else to go to get that info.

 

[Issac72]

Agreed. I just got my VivoActive HR and it's much more powerful

The only thing that interests me about Garmin's new device is auto-activity tracking. How does that work?

 

[Brian Gobrecht]

Ok I don't think people get that waterproof means. The Garmin your talking about is water resistant to 50 meters (150 Feet). Granted it's enough for most it's still not waterproof. If you don't trust me look for yourself. i am admitting on forgetting the Band 2 is IP67 but only for basic thing like washing hands and getting caught in the rain. If you don't believe me ill be more than happy to provide the safety documents. Waterproof means you can wear it at any and depth in water and not break/leak. So saying something is waterproof and not your being wrong. So please look up things.