Razer Shooting for October Nabu Smart Band Release

News
By Kevin Parrish
published

A recent report from DigiTimes suggested that Razer plans to launch its wearable gadget, the Nabu, in Q4 2014. We contacted Razer and were told that the company is shooting for an October release, which indeed falls into that Q4 2014 time frame.

Razer's Nabu was originally slated to launch in Q1 2014 but was delayed to the end of May. Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan said at the time that the company needed to "engage" with medical professionals to make sure that band would not cause skin irritations like other solutions out on the market.

"We want you guys to wear our device worry-free of skin irritations and the like," he said. "We have always followed our belief of making sure the product is ready for mass use rather than ship a less-than-perfect device, so it is no different with the Nabu."

During E3 2014, Razer showcased a new Nabu design that only had one OLED screen rather than the original design's two. A Razer representative at the show said that the upper screen was removed based on user feedback, as users discovered that they looked more at the bottom screen and ignore the top screen. Now the single bottom screen will activate only when the wrist is turned.

A small list of specifications shows that the OLED private message screen measures 128 x 32 pixels. The splash-proof device is compatible with iPhone 5, 5c and 5s as well as with Android devices using 4.3 (Jellybean) and newer. The hardware includes an accelerometer, an altimeter, a vibration motor, Bluetooth 4.0 LE, and a battery promising 5 to 7 days of life on a single charge.

Razer launched its Nabu Developer Program back in June, offering the open-source SDK for free and the actual hardware, dubbed the "Nabu Developer Edition", for a mere $49.99. Razer reports that over 30,000 developers have already signed up. Halfbrick, Shortbreak Studios, Techland and Wargaming are four that are developing apps, according to DigiTimes.

Back in June, the company also launched a beta program allowing 500 individuals to test the device and provide feedback. These units began to ship on July 10; the company is no longer taking applications for the beta.

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Kevin Parrish
8 Comments Comment from the forums
  • sha7bot
    Does it make me a bad father to insist my child wears one of these so I can see him wherever he may roam?
    Reply
  • Steve Simons
    Other than being cheaper (and later to the market), how is this different or better than the fitbit? Adding a small screen is probably not enough for me to change unless their application software blows me away or it promises that it can measure activity better for things like biking (where 99% of the activity trackers fall apart).
    Reply
  • Cryio
    I hope Razer will support Windows Phone.
    Reply
  • southernshark
    Other than being cheaper (and later to the market), how is this different or better than the fitbit? Adding a small screen is probably not enough for me to change unless their application software blows me away or it promises that it can measure activity better for things like biking (where 99% of the activity trackers fall apart).

    well price can be a huge part of the buying decision.
    Reply
  • Zeroplanetz
    Well no support for windows phone means I should probably stop looking into this.
    Reply
  • SPLWF
    Bad timing, I've been waiting for this since May. October? I hope they know that Summer ends around September.
    Reply
  • Steve Simons
    13972737 said:
    Other than being cheaper (and later to the market), how is this different or better than the fitbit? Adding a small screen is probably not enough for me to change unless their application software blows me away or it promises that it can measure activity better for things like biking (where 99% of the activity trackers fall apart).

    well price can be a huge part of the buying decision.

    That's true if the market isn't saturated. Now, people who want an activity tracker largely have one. Now it must differentiate itself in not just price but in some other way or feature... and it must do it before the iwatch or whatever it's going to be called hits the market. Capturing market share in a developed market can be quite tricky.
    Reply
  • SunnyStyle
    Not everyone already has one. I opted to based on Nabu Razor reviews over the fitbit.
    Reply