Striiv Fitness Motivating Pedometer Gets Smart, Gets Social

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Back in January Judie and I found ourselves in an unplanned competition of sorts. Judie was using the FitBit fitness device and I was using the Striiv Smart Pedometer. The devices could not have been more different.

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The FitBit was black and the Striiv white. The FitBit clipped to your cloths and has a small LED readout to let you know what was what.

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The Striiv has a large, touchscreen face reminiscent of a tiny smartphone. The FitBit had a USB dock that, when the device was synced to your computer, tracked your progress and even offered the ability to share it with the world through its web portal. The Striiv, on the other hand, had no desktop sync and no social component. It did, however, offer a motivational game that was rather effective and had the added motivation of doing good… At certain levels of activity you donated clean water to those who would otherwise not have it and it cost YOU nothing but a bit of energy. I loved the game and the ability to give clean water by simply walking but i really missed the social component. (I missed it even more when Judie gave Elana a FitBit and they started comparing notes!)

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Judie and I compared devices, compared steps, sometimes pushed ourselves at the end of the day to get the edge over one another and, when all was said and done, I won. (Okay, we lost count but since I’m writing this post that’s what I’m going with.)

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Fast forward less than half a year and Striiv has upped its game with V2 of their device. It still has a touchscreen, the fun, motivating game and the possibility to give clean water simply by walking but it adds a web component, improves the game and one-ups the FitBit’s social aspect by letting Striiv devices actual “speak” to one another. Even better, the Striiv will now be available at nearly 600 stores Best Buy stores by April 29 and is available today at BestBuy.com. And if that weren’t enough, the original Striiv is not being left behind. Far from it and I will explain in a moment.

Here’s what the company says about the Striiv. It is a:

small, touchscreen fitness device accurately tracks steps and motivates its users to walk more throughout the day.

With every step, Striiv learns user behavior and develops personal challenges and goals motivating them to add thousands of steps within each day: to walk more, to take the stairs more often, and to transform their health by walking. Striiv’s Smart Pedometer also launches with Striiv Connected, a new, built-in social component that lets users compete in activity-based challenges with friends and family. Striiv users can even race for real life prizes, like household chores or a cup of coffee.

I spoke with David Wang, CEO of the company last week and was struck by his passion. He is committed to a device that “isn’t just for athletes or data-driven early adopters.” Rather, the Striiv is for all of us, busy people who, if left to our own devices, don’t get up and move nearly enough. Or as Wang puts it, those of us who “want to get fit, give back, and have fun.”

Key to the Striiv Wang says is the ability to grab a bit of exercise where ever the opportunity presents itself. As he explains in the Press Release,

Research shows getting fit doesn’t require a gym or a crazy routine. It’s about seizing dozens of opportunities throughout the day to move more and then enjoying the countless benefits of a more active, healthy life.

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The new Striiv looks just like the old one but it brings so much more to the table. It actually learns behavior and encourages activity through the use of goals, donations of water, games and more. All of which are achieved by the user actually getting up and doing something. And the Striiv approach seems to work. On average, Striiv users are walking nearly 60 minutes a day, doing, on average, 3 miles a day and averaging 8 flights of stairs a day. And even after three months the majority of Striiv users are still using their devices to monitor and motivate. I will admit that the small, white device is surprisingly motivating. When it is noon and you look down to see you have done less than 500 steps, it is all but impossible to NOT get up and move for a bit!

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The company breaks the aspects of the Striiv system (yes, I believe we can now refer to it as a system) down so it can be easily understood.

Ready, Set, Race!: Step or stair-based competitions let people bet energy or real life prizes. Once the stakes are established, users connect devices, choose to walk together or separately, and Striiv keeps track of who reaches the finish line first. New Striiv characters (AKA Waddles, Sir Bacon or Walkatron), also provide opponents, and as in life, raise the stakes and win more! More difficult opponents and longer races, the more energy can be won!

Social Milestones: Beating friends’ or family members’ stats (like daily average or personal record for steps, stairs or minutes of activity) earns people bonus points and a trophy for that day. Social milestones are part of Striiv’s positive reinforcement focused Motivation System.

MyLand Expansion Pack: Myland, the addictive, Farmville-like, energy-based game launched with Striiv, adds new characters, plants, and structures. People can also spend energy points on Mystery Boxes, treasure boxes that contain exciting (or not so exciting) prizes.

More Reasons to Sync: Each time Striiv is connected to a computer, the latest activity information is stored, and people win a free Mystery Box to use in Myland! Syncing lets people record steps, stairs, calories burned and donations made, so they can keep track of progress.

We will be taking a closer look at each of these components in the coming weeks and, come July, we will truly be putting the Striiv’s through their paces when the Gear Diary Editorial Staff gets together for GearFest 2.

Alan Smith, senior merchant for Health & Fitness at Best Buy notes,

There has been a surge in interest in the mobile health devices and Best Buy is committed to meet that demand by carrying innovative products like Striiv. Striiv is especially important because it has the potential to positively affect the wellbeing of the average person who just needs a little motivation. We’re proud to carry Striiv on our shelves across the country to help make a positive impact on the country’s overall health and wellbeing.

The Striiv Smart Pedometer is $99.95. As previously noted it is available on BestBuy.com and will be in Best Buy stores by April 29. It is also available on HSN, HSN.com, Amazon, and striiv.com. And if you have a “first generation device” you are in luck. The original Striiv also has the built-in radio and will get an update some time in the coming weeks!!

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About the Author

Dan Cohen
Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. Dan is married to Raina Goldberg who is also an avid user of Apple products. They live in New Jersey with their golden doodle Nava.