by Diane Greene
Lifetrak Zone C410 unveils at Health 2.0 Fall Conference
Source: Salutron, Inc
Fitness Industry’s First Waterproof Activity Tracker Providing ECG Accurate Heart Rate From the Wrist – and Requiring No Charging – Now Includes Accurate Auto-Detection Sleep Tracking
FREMONT, Calif., Oct. 2, 2013, /PRNewswire/ Salutron, Inc., recognized leaders for the most innovative and scientifically accurate fitness and wellness products, today unveiled the LifeTrak Zone C410 – the latest in NASA caliber physiologic monitoring for activity and sleep tracking. Dr. Jin Lee, Chief Technology Officer and Senior Vice President of Engineering at Salutron provided a first viewing of the Zone C410 today on stage in a session entitled “Off the Couch and Into Shape: Tools for Physical Fitness” conducted in Grand Ballroom D at 11:30 am Pacific Standard Time during the Seventh Annual Health 2.0 Conference at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Silicon Valley.
Known for the leading-edge technology found in the LifeTrak brand and other private-label and well-known global sports brands, Salutron continues to deliver advances in activity monitoring that address unmet needs for consumers and drive better health. Introduction of the first auto-detected sleep monitoring capability for LifeTrak activity trackers, incorporated into the Zone C410, marks another important advance for the industry. Unlike other devices that require the press of a button before you fall asleep and when you wake up – which is often easy to forget to do – the Zone C410 is engineered to automatically detect when you fall asleep and wake up, as well as track and graphically report your sleep patterns throughout the night. As with other LifeTrak devices, the Zone C410 also provides accurate heart rate monitoring and blue-tooth compatibility for data syncing with mobile devices in a waterproof tracker that doesn’t require charging, encouraging continuous use.
“We believe that providing the best science in an activity tracker that can be continuously worn and easily integrated into daily activities will help drive significant behavior changes that lead to better overall health,” said Dr. Mike Tsai, Chairman, and CEO of Salutron. “We are proud to deliver automated sleep tracking technology incorporated into our Zone C410 to the industry and consumers. It demonstrates not only our commitment to strong science but sets us on a course to achieve our mission of helping people everywhere live longer, healthier lives.”
“Actigraphy – the continuous monitoring of levels of activity and sleep – provided in the LifeTrak Zone C410 is another highly accurate NASA caliber physiologic measurement that we have developed as part of our core technology,” said Dr. Jin Lee, Chief Technology Officer and Senior Vice President of Engineering at Salutron. “We are pleased to lead the industry in advancing the science of sleep monitoring and activity tracking and to continue to develop the strongest science to help keep people healthy. Our unique algorithms that provide calorie computation based on motion and heart rate, our active motion artifact correction, ECG accurate heart rate and low power signal processing for motion analysis, along with the incorporation of NASA caliber physiologic monitoring for sleep patterns sets a new standard for the activity tracking industry. We are inspired by the progress being made in activity tracking and excited by the opportunities to continue to lead the revolution in healthcare with our strong science and technology.”
by Diane Greene
How A Clever Sleep Tracker Could Be The Answer When It Comes To Improving Your Quality Of Sleep?
Sleep is a natural part of life but while it comes easily to some, it is far more difficult and unpredictable for others. Establishing a good sleeping pattern and improving your sleep quality is important for protecting your day to day functions and overall health. This brief guide will examine exactly why we should appreciate the importance of sleep, look at some of the different methods for getting back into a healthy routine of sleep hygiene, and introduce the growing range of sleep trackers and sleep tracking apps so you can see the options available.
We should never underestimate the importance of sleep
Many of us think that we can get by with barely any sleep because we are young and a few all-nighters cannot really hurt in the long run; others feel as though they have to cut back on their time asleep in order to stay productive and do everything they wish to do in their day. The truth is that constant attempts to sleep no more than four or five hours a night, and irregular sleeping patterns can have negative and dangerous effects on our health and cognitive functions. For example, people with poor sleep quality are more likely to have problems with concentration, recognition, and learning during the day, and prolonged negative patterns can increase the risk of an individual developing heart disease, obesity, diabetes, mood issues and immune deficiencies.
What can we do to change poor sleeping habits and get this quality sleep that we all desire and need?
There are many possible causes for poor sleeping patterns and an inability to get a full, refreshing nights sleep. In some cases it can be a medical problem such as stress-related insomnia or a hormone deficiency – perhaps brought on by a hectic lifestyle, and an incorrectly lit sleeping environment – in others can simply be due to our inability to establish a regular routine or a lack of good sleep hygiene. Sleep hygiene is a subject that many of us do not think about but it could be vital in ensuring a more regular, predictable pattern of sleep that is free from interruptions.
There are different strategies that can be taken to help improve the situation such as allopathic or natural sleeping aids, hormone supplementation, and the act of simply creating a better sleeping environment. The way the room is lit, and the number of distractions and noises can have a negative effect on sleep; because it is harder to fall asleep sufficiently if the room is not dark enough or the TV is still playing when you wake up at 3 am. Light levels also affect melatonin production, a hormone that helps regulate sleep; the darker it is the more you produce but supplementation can also boost your levels if you need some help. Other potential aids include herbal therapies, like teas and aromatherapeutic baths, and relaxation techniques.
Investing in some sleep tracking gadgets could help turn poor sleeping patterns into readable data and solutions.
The measures outlined above are all designed to help you overcome particular problems with your sleeping pattern and poor sleep quality but there is a good chance that you are currently unaware of just how bad your habits really are, and the changes that need to be made. This is where sleep tracking devices can help. Sleep is just as important to our overall health as movement and exercise, and if we are happy to use plenty of fitness apps and pedometers in their daily lives, then why not throw a sleep tracker into the mix and see what the results say.
LifeTrak recently caught the attention of the press with its Lifetrak C300 activity tracker – thanks to its Bluetooth connectivity, heart monitor, interchangeable stylish bands and improved calorie counter – but it seems that a new version, the Lifetrak C410 Zone, is hot on its heels and is bringing an additional sleep tracker into the mix. This means that it could become the ultimate fitness tool for measuring overall health and buyers will, potentially, never need to take it off. This Lifetrak C410 is just one example in a wide range of devices that offer sleep tracking in some form or another, and there are plenty of similar wristbands. This selection includes the barely noticeable, 24/7 ‘UP’ movement tracker from Jawbone, which spots sleep patterns and interruptions; the wireless, Fitbit Flex band, with its silent alarm; the portable, comfortable Wakemate band and the multifunctional and accurate Basis watch. On the other end of the scale, there is, of course, the Zeo Sleep Manager, which uses a headband to measure sleeping patterns, and a bedside display to analyze the results, but this may a little too extreme for some.
Do not forget that there are also sleep tracking apps and software tools for your smartphone.
Gadgets like the LifeTrak Zone C410 are a great way of monitoring your sleep and helping to get back into a healthy pattern but all these great looking designs and clever features are worth nothing without some useful software behind them. The Lifetrak C410 will work with the Azumio Argus app, the fitness tracking app has been continually praised by technophiles and fitness freaks since its recent release because of its potential for promoting health and its convenience on iOS; however, alongside the GPS capabilities, heart monitor and activity log there is also a sleep tracker that uses the phone’s own accelerometer to capture your movement at night or download the data from the Lifetrak tracker, and gauge how peaceful your night’s sleep really was.
Summary: why a sleep tracker is so helpful for improving sleep quality.
At the moment, a specialized gadget containing a sleep tracking app like Argus is probably the best option if you are looking for a reliable, technical aid to help you better understand your sleeping patterns – especially while we are still waiting for the LifeTrak C410 is now available for purchase. Adding a sleep tracker to your current range of gadgets is highly recommendable because it could make more of a difference than you realize. By focusing on improvements, patterns and data these tools could take all the guesswork out of your sleeping problems and actually help highlight a positive, achievable solution.
LIFETRAK ZONE C410 MAIN FEATURES:
AUTOMATIC ACTIVITY TRACKING
- Sleep Tracking
- Calorie Burn
- Steps
- Auto-Calibrated Distance
SLEEP QUALITY
- Based on motion and arm posture to observe how well you sleep
- Automatic sleep and wake detection
BLUETOOTH SMART CONNECTIVITY
- Transfer captured data to the smartphones
- Develop your own Apps with the open API
- Integration with Azumio Argus App
ADVANCED CALORIE TRACKING
- Provide full day calories burned based on the proprietary calorie algorithm of integration heart rate and activity data
DYNAMIC DISTANCE CALIBRATION
- Dynamically adjusts stride length based on an identification of walking, jogging and running motions with patented pace-based calibration algorithm
ECG ACCURATE HEART RATE
- Patented S-Pulse heart rate from a simple press of a button
- Display ECG waveform as a reference
- Stores last heart rate taken
WEEKLY AND HOURLY RECORDS
- Weekly saved records allow reviewing your activity results from the past seven days
- The 24-hour chart allows you to see your progress throughout the day
COMFORT FIT BAND
- Reversible bands for full customization and stylish look
- Additional band colors available here
NO CHARGING REQUIRED
- Long-lasting CR2032 Li-ion coin cell battery (1year average)
WATERPROOF
- Fully submersible to 30 ft
Lifetrak Products Comparison:
| Brite 450 | Zone C410 | Move C300 | Core C200 |
|---|
| Brite 450 | Zone C410 | Move C300 | Core C200 |
|  |  |  |  |
| Smart Noticefications |  |  | | |
| Light Tracking | | | | |
| Sleep tracking | | | | |
| Automatic Sleep activation | | | | |
| BlueTooth Smart, Apps:
Azumio Argus,
MapMyFitness | | | | |
| Heart rate monitor | | | | |
| All day calories burn
| | | | |
| All day steps tracking | | | | |
| Auto calibrated Distance | | | | |
| 7 Day records | | | | |
| Hourly records | | | | |
| Time Keeping | | | | |
| Water Proof up to 90 meters | | | | |
| Battery no Charging required, last up to 1 year | | | | |
| Retail Price | $149.99 | $99.99 | $69.99 | $59.99 |
| Click to find the lowest price | Available Soon! |  |  |  |
by Diane Greene
Fitbit Force or Lifetrak Zone which one to buy?
How do the Fitbit Force and the Lifetrak Zone C410 compare? The Fitbit Force and the Lifetrak C410 both demonstrate how the science that has gone into creating wellness tracker bands has resulted in the most impressive health-monitor-on-a-wrist products that have ever been seen in the market. But which among the two is the superior wellness tracker band?
To answer that question, there’s a need to understand that the philosophy behind wellness tracker bands is that they provide information about their wearers’ health and activities in the hope of driving these individuals to make changes in their lifestyles that will lead to their improved overall health. Therefore, the more superior wellness tracker band is the one that has features that are better able to provide users with information about their health and activities, which in turn, should drive them to lead healthier lifestyles.
With the main criterion for judging settled, let’s take a look at how the features of the Fitbit Force and the Lifetrak Zone C410 compare:
ACTIVITY TRACKING
The Fitbit Force prides itself with its pioneering incorporation of an altimeter, which can track how many flights of stairs a user has climbed throughout each day. The technology is groundbreaking in that other fitness trackers have only been able to consider distance travelled in tracking how many steps their wearers have taken, which is, in turn, used to compute for how many calories users have burned.
Furthermore, the Fitbit Force also considers “active minutes” — defined as periods of intense physical activity, such as jogging and playing tennis — in its computation of calories that a user has burned. Thus, through the incorporation of an altimeter and by considering a person’s “active minutes”, the Fitbit Force can boast to have added two features that more realistically compute for the number of calories a user has burned.
On the other hand, while the Lifetrak Zone C410 features don’t include an altimeter, it can pride itself with being the first fitness tracker that uses a calorie algorithm that can dynamically consider a user’s running, jogging or walking motions to adjust its computation of the number of steps a user has taken — a Lifetrak patented system. More importantly, though, its other patented feature, the S-Pulse, can take ECG-accurate measurements of a user’s heart rate, information that is then used to compute for the number of calories a user has burned each day.
Therefore, while the Fitbit Force features an altimeter and considers “active minutes”, the C410 trumps those two features with its impressively accurate heart rate measurements, a better basis for computing caloric burning.
CALORIC INTAKE TRACKING
One seeming advantage of the Fitbit Force over the Lifetrak C410 is that the latest Fitbit release can be used to track what a user takes in by providing an impressive database of various types of food and drinks through which a user can record caloric intake. However, the problem with this feature of the Fitbit Force is that while its listing of processed and purchased meals is very extensive, it becomes hopelessly tedious to input every ingredient of each home-prepared meal a user takes in, making it next-to-impossible to have an accurate and complete summary of a user’s caloric intake.
SLEEP QUALITY TRACKING
The Fitbit Force can monitor how long a user sleeps and also what fraction of that sleeping time can be considered restless sleep based on the user’s movements while sleeping. The feature can be activated by a user just before sleep, and if ever a user forgets to activate the feature, the sleeping period can be inputted into the system, and the app can then go back and lay in the data it recorded of the user tossing and turning in sleep to determine the quality of sleep during that period. Furthermore, it features a vibrating alarm that wakes a user up at a user’s set time.
The Lifetrak C410 features don’t include an alarm, but the C410 definitely makes use of more advanced sleep quality tracking technology. Like the Fitbit Force, the C410 takes into consideration its wearer’s movements while sleeping in addition to sleep duration to determine the quality of sleep a user gets each night. However, where the C410 beats out the Fitbit Force is its ability to automatically detect when a user falls asleep and wakes up, making it unnecessary for a user to press a button to activate the sleep-monitoring feature.
APP CONNECTIVITY
Connectivity with other devices is an area that the Fitbit Force can claim to dominate over the Lifetrak Zone C410. With Bluetooth technology, the Fitbit Force can sync automatically with a user’s computer and iPhone models 4s and above, plus more recently released Android devices. Furthermore, if a user has an iOS7 device, the Zone can receive incoming call notifications showing the caller’s name or number; however, this feature has yet to be rolled out awaiting an update from Fitbit.
Moreover, with the Fitbit Force, users, through both newer iOS and Android devices, can compare readings and send messages or smack talk with authorized friends who also have the same device.
The Lifetrak Zone C410, however, isn’t that far behind as it also uses Bluetooth technology to enable users to transfer data captured by the Zone to their smartphones. In turn, this allows users to view their results from the most previous 7 days.
LOOK
When it comes to judging these two wellness trackers’ looks, it’s a matter of taste, really.
The Fitbit Force, with its OLED display, looks like a sleek rubber bracelet that comes in two colors (black and blue) and two sizes (small and large). Its clasp design, which secures the device to the user’s wrist, was built to make the Force as flat as possible. However, a criticism of the Force is that it’s chunkier than the Fitbit Flex, an older model of the device.
The Lifetrak C410, with its bigger display screen, on the other hand, looks more like a sporty wristwatch. But unlike the Fitbit Force, its bands are reversible and interchangeable, a total of 8 different-colored wristbands being available to more fashion-conscious users.
POWER
The Fitbit Zone features a battery that can last for 7 to 10 days before it needs to be charged with a USB cable, and Fitbit can send a user an email notification when it’s time to charge the battery. With the Lifetrak Zone C410, charging isn’t a concern since its battery lasts for over a year, thus encouraging continuous use.
WATER RESISTANCE
The Fitbit Zone is listed as being water-resistant, quite unimpressive when compared with the waterproof Lifetrak C410 that can safely be submersed in up to 90 feet of water, allowing the device to be used even when swimming.
PRICE
Buying the $130 Fitbit Force will set a user back $30 more than purchasing the $100 Lifetrak, a significant price difference.
Overall, because the Lifetrak Zone C410 does a better job at tracking its users’ activity and sleep behavior — not to mention costs less, doesn’t need charging, is waterproof and is $30 less expensive – it seems to be the better buy. Yes, the Fitibit Force claims to be able to record a user’s caloric intake and to have better app connectivity, but considering that a superior wellness tracker band should provide its user with higher quality information with the user exerting the least amount of effort, it seems that Lifetrak C410 is the product that can help users more in leading healthier lifestyles.
| Lifetrak Zone C410 | Fitbit Force |
|---|
| Lifetrak Zone C410 | Fitbit Force |
| |  |
| Stair Climb | | |
| Step Taken | | |
| Distance traveled | | |
| Calorie burned | | |
| Very Active minute | | |
| Quality of Sleep | | |
| Hours Slept | | |
| Automatic Sleep activation | | |
| ECG accurate Heart Rate | | |
| Time | | |
| Silent Wake Alarm | | |
| BLE 4.0 Smart connectivity to smartphone | | |
| Automatic Sync to PC or Mac within 20 feet | | |
| Graphical LCD display | Large FSTN LCD | Small OLED |
| Review results on wrist w/ past 7-day records | | |
| Battery Life | Up to 1 year | 10days - Rechargeable |
| Water resistance up to 90 meters | | |
| Retail Price | $99.95 | $129.95 |
 |  | |
Known for the leading-edge technology found in the LifeTrak brand and other private-label and well-known global sports brands, Salutron continues to deliver advances in activity monitoring that address unmet needs for consumers and drive better health. Introduction of the first auto-detected sleep monitoring capability for LifeTrak activity trackers, incorporated into the Zone C410, marks another important advance for the industry. Unlike other devices that require the press of a button before you fall asleep and when you wake up – which is often easy to forget to do – the Zone C410 is engineered to automatically detect when you fall asleep and wake up, as well as track and graphically report your sleep patterns throughout the night. As with other LifeTrak devices, the Zone C410 also provides accurate heart rate monitoring and blue-tooth compatibility for data syncing with mobile devices in a waterproof tracker that doesn’t require charging, encouraging continuous use.
