Sony’s fitness tracker, the SmartBand 2 arrives in Malaysia

Promised to help you integrate healthier habits and a fitness focused lifestyle, it aims to rival other heart-rate monitor (HRM) equip wearables like Fitbit, Garmin, Polar and Jawbone. Habitual behaviour can either make you fit as an ox with a diet to boot, or drown you to becoming a sluggish sloth but how does Sony’s sequal match up?

As a display-less band, it won’t serve you any time-telling information, nor will it give any real-time tracking, so it might add extra heft to your existing watch-filled wrist. The predecessor didn’t have a HRM, basically only offering you notification for calls, texts and other apps.

There’s an accelerometer living inside the shell of the smartwatch, so it’ll track walking, running and other movement related activities. All your info will be viewed on the manufacturer’s Lifelog app, giving you a detailed insight into how much you’ve been moving around – or lack thereof. Sony also throws in a sleep tracker that monitors how well your slumber sessions are and is also enabled with a smart alarm clock, that vibrates on cue.

The device’s notifications will come to you in either through a simple vibration or RGB LEDs that flashes when something comes in. The SmartBand 2 also gives you the ability to control music on your smartphone or tablet – taping to play, pause and skip through your tracks.

If you’re the forgetful type, the device is smart enough to monitor proximity, alerting you when you’re further than 10 metres from your paired devices. Charging will take 2 hours to get it topped up, and it’ll last you up to 2 days.

Being a Sony, it classically is IP68 waterproof. If you’re interested in purchasing the SmartBand 2 or taking a closer look at it yourself, you can find it at Sony Stores (the Curve and KLCC), Sony Centres and authorised dealers nationwide. Available in an array of colour options – white, black, indigo, and pink; it’ll retail for RM 599.

You can visit the product site here.