Sony unveils SmartBand 2 with heart rate tracking capabilities

Sony has today taken the wraps off the second iteration of its fitness wearable, the SmartBand 2, which it will begin selling in 60 countries worldwide starting in September. There’s not a ton of new stuff going on here, though, so what makes it worthy of being a successor?

Aside from some minor design changes to the interchangeable silicone band, the most significant upgrade is the addition of heart rate tracking through an “advanced” heart rate sensor. Its new IP68 certification also seems to mean that it’s now dust-tight, meaning no debris at all will reach the internals.

The SmartBand 2 has NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, a 58mAh battery good for 2 days and will work with Android 4.4 and above. Sony touts that SmartBand 2 owners will be able to automatically track their workouts whilst mapping their heart rate alongside each activity. The companion Lifelog app, though, keeps track of all of this collected data and also provides insights on how one is performing over time, showing motivational messages at milestones (i.e. 1 million steps walked). The addition of the new sensor means users can also monitor their “excitement and relaxation levels” in case for some reason you want double confirmation that, yes, that feeling you’re having is stress.

Through a separate host app, users can do things like set wake-up alarms and adjust what types of notifications light up the band’s three pulsing LEDs.

“We set out to create the most advanced wearable at this section of the market – SmartBand 2 has the capability to deliver, and make biometric data meaningful for users within Lifelog” said Kaz Tajima, Senior Vice President, Head of UX Creative Design in its blog post announcing the SmartBand 2. “Not only does it represent a powerful vision of how consumers can learn more about themselves – it allows us to explore exciting new opportunities with development partners.”

There are no immediate details on when in September it’ll go on sale and in what countries, but we do know it’ll be available in black and white colors at launch, and two additional vibrant colors shortly after – Pink and Indigo.