Apple and Google Announce Health Data Integration
At their latest developer conferences, Apple and Google each announced their plans to integrate self-tracking data into their mobile operating systems. Apple presented HealthKit and the Health app, which both will be released with iOS 8. HealthKit allows wearables and apps providing health and fitness services to share their data via the HealthKit APIs. The information is centrally stored on the user’s smartphone and from there, users can share their data with other apps or healthcare providers using the Health app. This feature makes it much easier to build services around self-tracking data. At the recent I/O conference, Google announced Google Fit, a technology that provides features similar to Apple’s HealthKit. Google has already announced the first partners for its new health platform, one of them being Nike+, whose products were previously compatible solely to Apple’s iOS devices.
Google Presents Details for Android Wear
Also at the I/O conference, Google presented further details on Android Wear, its new platform for smartwatches first announced in March 2014. Android Wear is designed to let smartphone apps seamlessly integrate with smartwatches by using notifications based on the user environment. With Android Wear, users can perform tasks such as navigation, control music or even order food directly from their smartwatches, as demonstrated at the developers’ conference. Android’s Wear interface is built primarily on elements called cards, which are already in use on Google Now on Android smartphones. Commands can be performed via touch gestures and voice control. This first generation of Android Wear smartwatches does not include speakers, so voice calls won’t be available for these devices. LG’S and Samsung’s first models are now available for preorder and Motorola will bring its round-faced smartwatches to the market later on this summer.
Salesforce Wear Makes Wearables the New Business Tools
Salesforce has launched its Salesforce Wear Developer Pack, which aims to enable wearable apps to connect with companies’ platforms. Described as a collection of open-source starter apps, Salesforce has covered devices like Google Glass, the Samsung Gear smartwatch, the Android Wear smartwatch and Myo. The applications take advantage of each of these technologies’ unique capabilities, making it easier for developers to build upon them. The initial app for Glass allows to access data from the Salesforce platform while the Android Wear app lets users handle requests via an alert manager. For the gesture detection wristband Myo, Salesforce envisions surgeons being able to access medical data for their patients, while Samsung´s Gear app allows users to retrieve basic information about the people they are scheduled to meet.
Wearable Technologies Experts Meet in San Francisco
America’s leading conference for the wearable tech industry is just around the corner and will bring the entire sector’s ecosystem together on the 8th and 9th of July. The 12th edition of the Wearable Technologies Conference will feature speakers from companies such as Google, Metaio, Mercedes-Benz and adidas and will be a great opportunity to discover the latest startups and trends in this fast-growing market. From new materials, technologies, new wearable from factors and interfaces to the future of health this conference offers an ultimate overview of what is happening in the wearables industry and is a great opportunity for industry leaders and newcomers to network. Check out the full agenda.
