This Band Makes the Apple Watch Smarter than a Smartwatch

Apple Watch is already one of the most capable smartwatches on the market, but a smart strap announced this week at CES pushes its features way beyond what Apple itself developed.

The so-called AURA Strap for the Apple Watch is nothing more than a band that comes with its own smart capabilities, being able to do things like tracking hydration and body composition and then generating statistics that are sent to your iPhone wirelessly.

Using bioimpedance, the strap is able to run a quick body composition analysis, which means it’s able to measure fat and muscle mass in your body. Then, it can determine the hydration level and calculate the risk of heart failure, something that the Apple Watch is capable of, but which the AURA Strap could possibly determine more accurately given the extra readings.

Now available for pre-order

The design of the AURA Strap doesn’t set itself apart from the rest of the Apple Watch bands out there, as it uses sensors placed inside to collect information. It also uses the standard Apple Watch lugs, so you can easily connect it to your watch.

AURA Strap uses a removable battery that should last for six months, according to the official estimates. It obviously supports Apple’s HealthKit and is fully waterproof, just like the Apple Watch, so you can wear it all the time, even when taking a shower. Of course, it comes in two sizes to fit the Apple Watch version that you’re using.

AURA says the band needs just 20 seconds to get stable data about active and reactive resistant of the body, with the stats then automatically transferred to the iPhone and the Apple Watch.

The strap is offered in a total of four colors, namely black, green, red, and gray, and is already available for pre-order with a $99 price tag. AURA says the first batch is limited and delivery starts in early April.