Acer announces ‘Leap Ware’, a new Smartwatch with an array of fitness-tracking sensors

Acer has announced a new wearable device in its next@acer event in New York. The wearable is called the Leap Ware Smartwatch and expands Acer’s overall device portfolio to cover a new category.

Acer has already experimented with fitness bands in the past, and has launched the Liquid Leap series back in 2014 , but the entry into Smartwatch territory is new. Acer has priced Leap Ware at $139 which amounts to Rs 8,932 at the time of writing. The company claims that the Smartwatch will give anything between three to five days of battery backup on a single charge. This means that the users don’t need to charge the Smartwatch every night to get them through the next day.

The Smartwatch will be available in July in North America, Q3 2017 in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and August in Taiwan for NTD 4,990. The smartwatch will be available with Navy Blue and Light Brown coloured straps. Users can also use any custom 20 mm watch band to personalise their Leap Ware wearable. MH Wang, General Manager for Smart Devices Products and IT Products Business at Acer added, “As the pace of modern lifestyles become ever more hectic, people demand technology that can keep them on track and motivated to pursue their goals. The new Acer Leap Ware is designed to act as a virtual coach to help people go, track, and share, sending them reminders and alerts when they need them the most.”

Acer Leap Ware sports a circular industrial design that comes with a polished stainless steel frame. The company has equipped the watch with MediaTek MT2523 chipset and an MT2511 biosensing chip that enables a range of sensing capabilities. The smartwatch uses Corning Gorilla Glass SR to protect the 1.6-inch circular face from scratches.

Leap Ware has an IPX7 rating which means that the Smartwatch cab offers some level of water resistance and survive, say, unexpected rain. The wearable is packed with sensors to detect and measure heart rate, stamina, stress and fatigue, and exposure to ultraviolet rays along with an LED which illuminates at the press of the button. Leap Ware users can sync their devices with Android and iOS devices using the Liquid Life app. This enables users to use their smartphones as a dashboard to analyse all the collected data.

The interesting thing about the Smartwatch and the Liquid Life app is that in addition to allowing users to set daily goals and notifications to help users, the app also gives users the option to add other users in different groups and engage in friendly competition. Acer has added avatars that provide users with snapshots of their progress.

The company has also gamified the entire approach of fitness by soon allowing users to earn ‘Power Coins’ using different activities, including things like the number of consecutive days you’ve biked a certain distance and more. Acer thinks that this gamification will help users get and stay motivated and the company gives users the option to redeem Power Coins on a ‘Liquid Life Market’ for items, rewards or potential discounts.