If you have been keeping up with general gamification news, you might be aware of the Nike Fuelband that came out in February this year.The FuelBand is another addition to the Nike+ line of products that seek to quantify and track your physical workouts, while keeping you engaged in doing so. This little device lends itself well to the average person and tracks movement with an accelerometer that the user can wear on his/her wrist. It will track steps, calories, the time, and Nike’s own quantification of physical activity called NikeFuel. The Fuel idea is pretty cool: you set a goal (2000 Fuel is the default) and you simply aim to beat that goal every day in overall activity. Unfortunately its not transparent as to how Fuel is actually calculated but I do not think that is a big deal (More on this in the future).
Nike has also done a great job with managing the data management of the FuelBand, using a quick and easy social log-in interface (designed by Gigya) and a wide array of features in their web-application to keep you engaged. The wristband itself actually comes apart to reveal a USB connector to link into any computer. If you have iOS, you can wirelessly sync your fuelband to your device via mobile app. Android users do not have a mobile application but are supposed to have one in the coming weeks.
Essentially, this is a wristband that is helping you compete against yourself to be more active, regardless of what that activity might be. I’ve found myself very interested in this concept and have taken it upon myself to obtain the device for a GCo Nike FuelBand Review.
I will be looking at the following:
- The Device’s Engagement Tools and Design
- The Effectiveness of the Engagement Features
- The Impact of the FuelBand on my Physical Activity Overtime
- A summary of my own personal experience with it each week.
For one month, starting next week, I will write a weekly-post outlining my experiences using this application and how it has engaged me over-time. When it comes to engagement, I believe that a simple week-long test is not sufficient; it really needs to stand the test of time. So stay tuned and see how the FuelBand works out for me in the future. If you have any questions you would like answered by my NikeFuel review please – shout it out below and I’ll make it happen.
Watch Nike’s video about it below:
