Whoop faces backlash after cancelling free hardware upgrades
A day after launching Whoop 5.0 fitness tracker, the company is now facing backlash from its existing customers. Previously, the company had said that customers who had the membership for at least six months would be getting the new fitness trackers for free.
A new report by The Verge suggests Whoop has changed the terms and conditions on its 'How to upgrade' page. The company now states that users will now have to extend their membership by at least a year or pay a one time $49 or $79 upgrade fee to get its newest fitness trackers to get the regular Whoop 5.0 or Whoop 5.0 MG 'at no extra cost'.
In case you are wondering, Whoop's membership page on March 28 had stated that members will 'receive the next-generation device for free after having been a member for six months or more.'
In an official Reddit thread, people noted that members who joined Whoop or extended their membership in the last 30 days are also eligible for the offer.
Unsurprisingly, existing Whoop members who were waiting for their new fitness trackers are unhappy, with some saying they won't be continuing their membership. A post made by a customer on the Whoop subreddit describing the move as 'a slap in the face' has already garnered more than 1,000 upvotes.
To give you a quick recap, the US based health tech and wearable brand recently announced two new devices – Whoop 5.0 and Whoop MG. Packed with health tracking features like blood pressure insights, heart screener with ECH, hormonal insights alongside more advanced health metrics. The company claims it's new devices are smaller than their predecessors and offer more than two weeks of battery life.
Whoop 5.0 and Whoop MG can be accessed by opting for the company's membership plans, which start at $199.
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