Nike today released a long-awaited update to its FuelBand app for iPhone users with the fitness tracking FuelBand wearable adding support for sharing NikeFuel points with Apple’s Health app on iOS 8. The update also adds support for motion tracking right from the iPhone for iPhone 5s users and up and no longer requires a Nike FuelBand to use.
The new version uses HealthKit, a framework introduced with iOS 8, to let Nike’s FuelBand app share data easily and with your permission to Apple’s built-in Health app and other apps that integrate with HealthKit. NikeFuel, the fitness company’s metric for tracking movement throughout the day, is featured as a supported fitness metric in Apple’s own Health app.
In addition to adding HealthKit integration with the new version of FuelBand, Nike also touts a new sports feed feature for making fitness tracking more social in one place with connections to Nike+, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The streamlined feed supports sharing goals and cheering others along as they work toward their own goals.
The app also talks with other Nike apps including Nike+ Training Club and Nike+ Running to share how much NikeFuel you’ve earned during workout sessions.
Before today’s new FuelBand app release, Nike has supported HealthKit and Apple’s Health app with NikeFuel sharing through its Nike+ Running app released shortly after the introduction of Apple’s fitness app on iOS 8.
Since the iPhone 5s began tracking steps and iOS 8 added a way to view those steps without needing third party apps, many popular fitness tracking apps that previously required bands have opted to make the band optional, and a recent report actually claimed the smartphone can be more reliable assuming you take it everywhere with you.
Nike+ FuelBand for iPhone is available for free on the App Store. Nike FuelBands can be bought from the Apple Store for $99.95 with street prices for first generation models as low as $70.
