Razer has steadily been diversifying its range of products over the last few years – moving away from its gaming peripheral beginnings – and this year it has taken another big side step announcing the Razer Nabu smartwatch at CES 2014.
The new device is apparently a hybrid of a traditional fitness tracking band, along the lines of a Nike Plus, and the latest tech fad the smartwatch.
“We are calling it a cross between a smartwatch and a fitness band. It’s a wearable device focused on helping you live smarter”, said Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan.
As such its two notification screens – one where a traditional watch face would be and one on the opposite side – can provide wellness data and smartphone notifications.
The larger outer screen is used to show alerts, which you can shake your wrist to dismiss, while the inner display can be used to show more detailed information about incoming calls or other activities.
On the fitness side of things, the Nabu tracks steps walked, distance travelled, and it will monitor your sleep too. Inside is an accelerometer, altimeter and cylindrical vibration motor.
The ability to monitor sleep gives a clue as to this being a slim, lightweight, rubberised device meant to be worn at all times.
It uses Bluetooth 4.0 LE for communication and has a suggested battery life of 7-10hrs – hardly conducive to non-stop wearing – while it is also rated as rain and splash proof.
Available to developers now, the Razer Nabu costs them just $49 (£30) but it is expected to cost more to general consumers when it hits its release date of March.
