Microsoft Band Update Adds Bike Tile, Virtual Keyboard And More

Microsoft Band is receiving a major software update today, its first ever since the device was launched in October last year, the update brings several new features like a bike tile, a virtual keyboard, new guided workouts and a lot more. Microsoft’s wearable device has been hard to get since there’s great demand for it, those who were fortunate enough to get one will now enjoy the features that this update brings.

With the bike tile users will be able to track their bike rides both indoors and outdoors, on the road or the trail, with the heart rate monitor being optimized for biking activities when the tile is active.

The Band will conduct a speed analysis, map the ride using GPS if the user wants, track elevation and then display the information in the Microsoft Health mobile app. Integration with Microsoft Health web dashboard will arrive in the near future.

This update adds five new biking workouts to guided workouts. The quick read function brings another option to swiftly catch up on texts, emails and notifications.

When this feature is enabled notifications are displayed in a large font size and words come up in rapid succession so that users can read even while they’re in motion without having to scroll manually.

Windows Phone 8.1 users will be able to reply to messages using the virtual keyboard that automatically predicts commonly used words and phrases, or they can use Cortana to dictate the reply.

Microsoft also revealed that third party developers will get access to the Band through the SDK so that they can start building their own apps for this wearable device.

The software update for Microsoft Band has started rolling out today and will become available across all regions in a couple of days.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Gadgets
Tags: Microsoft, microsoft band, Wearable Tech