Microsoft Health app to work with phone sensors and new dashboard features coming

Today Microsoft have announced a range of improvements to its Microsoft Health platform and Microsoft Band. The Microsoft Health app will be able it to track daily steps and calories from sensors on Android, iPhone and Windows Phones devices. Currently the Microsoft Health app only works with the Microsoft Band but this update will broaden the Microsoft Health platform.

The Microsoft Health web dashboard is getting new features including Sleep Recovery, Comparative Insights, Exercise Observation and VO2 Max details. VO2 Max records the “maximum volume of oxygen used during exercise, and is the primary indicator of cardiovascular fitness”, the following features will be available from April 27^th:

Comparative Insights: Measures data such as daily steps, sleep, workout frequency and calorie burn and compares it to similar Microsoft Health customers based on body type (height and weight). Customers looking for motivation can use comparative insights as a benchmark to understand their health relative to similar people.

Sleep Recovery: Good sleep is the foundation of health, and something everybody does and needs. Microsoft Band tracks the length and quality of sleep. Use the Microsoft Health web dashboard to analyze sleep restoration, sleep efficiency, and wake-ups, to find out how well the body restores its resources during sleep.

Fitness Benefit: Track fitness progress using historical data to measure improvement over time.

VO2 Max: VO2 max refers to the maximum volume of oxygen used during exercise, and is the primary indicator of cardiovascular fitness. Traditionally, measuring VO2 Max is cumbersome. Not anymore. Microsoft Band estimates VO2 max based on heart rate information. Now customers can track how their VO2 max increases as they improve fitness level and achieve their wellness goals, simply.

Run/Exercise Observations: Get more out of run and workout data with in-depth observations and insights. With a week of data, customers can determine which day of the week and at what time of day they perform best. Using historical data from as far back as five weeks, customers can track whether they’re maintaining, progressing, or need to re-dedicate themselves. Analyze detailed stats to find specific aspects of runs and workouts that can be improved.

The cycling features are being expanded from tomorrow there will be integration MapMyRide and Strava.