logo
Fit check: 8 wearable technology devices for wellness on the go

Fit check: 8 wearable technology devices for wellness on the go

USA Today20-02-2025

These smart devices can transform daily life
Track health, sleep, brain function, and more with today's wearable technology — Photo courtesy of lechatnoir / E+
Advertisement
There's no hiding that we're more connected to technology than ever. But when it comes to wearable technology, these devices can be powerful tools for enhancing health. Wearable technology is revolutionizing how we interact with the world, from smartwatches and rings that track fitness goals to headbands that help you sleep and relax. Here are some of the most innovative wearables on the market today.
What is wearable technology?
Wearable technology is any device that tracks bodily functions, like sleep, heart rate, and calories burned. There are devices designed to help you adapt to stress, focus, and attain a sense of calm. Most wearable health-monitoring devices sync to an app to assess long-term health data and help you make changes to improve your overall wellness. The downside is that wearable devices can be expensive and need intermittent charging. Data privacy can be a concern.
What's the best wearable tech?
You should determine a few things before shopping for a wearable device. Some good questions to ask yourself are: How do you want to wear the device, what do you want to monitor, and what are you hoping to achieve? From wristbands to headbands, pendants to rings, these high-tech wearables all have something to offer.
Healbe GoBe3
Say goodbye to counting calories with a wearable tech wrist device — Photo courtesy of Healbe Corporation
If monitoring calories is your top priority, this is a must-have device. Healbe's GoBe3 wrist device has built-in sensors that monitor and provide real-time data for caloric intake and calories burned. It also monitors hydration, stress, sleep quality, heart rate, pulse, steps taken, and more. GoBe3 is comfortable to wear with a soft silicone strap. It has a touch-sensitive, anti-glare "always on" display that allows the user quick access to real-time information. Users can sync their data with Apple Health and Google Fit.
Price: Under $200
Muse S Headband
Get some z's (and stay asleep) with wearable devices like the Muse headband — Photo courtesy of Muse
Research has shown that getting good sleep increases your overall health and well-being. Train your brain with a Muse S Headband, which uses cutting-edge neurotechnology and advanced EEG sensors to monitor heart rate, breathing, brain activity, and body movement. The brain-sensing headband is designed to help users attain sharper focus, increase calmness, and improve sleep by providing audio biofeedback and tracking essential data. You can wear it during the day and/or while sleeping.
Price: Under $400
Apollo
Boost your energy or calm your mind right from your wrist with the Apollo wearable device, which uses vibration to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system. Select from high or low frequencies to increase focus, unwind, fall asleep, or be more mindful. Just as you work your muscles, Apollo's makers say you can train your vagus nerve to manage your body's reaction to stress. Use the app to schedule your "vibe" session throughout the day or at night. You can wear this health-monitoring device around your ankle or clipped to your shirt.
Price: Under $400
Evie Ring
Effectively monitor your health with the discreet and stylish Evie ring — Photo courtesy of Movano Health
Track your health and fitness inconspicuously with the attractive Evie Ring. This women-specific monitor uses biometric sensors to provide stats on heart rate, activity, sleep, menstrual cycle, body temperature, and more. Its battery lasts up to four days, and it's easy to wear around the clock for consistent monitoring. Use the free app to access up-to-date data for optimal wellness. The ring features an open design (to allow for finger swelling) in three metallic finishes.
Price: Under $300
Neurable MW75 Neuro
Improve focus and concentration with wearable technology like the MW75 Neuro headset — Photo courtesy of Neurable
With the MW75 Neuro headset, you can stay laser-focused on tasks while preventing fatigue. The headset's neurotechnology uses EEG sensors to process and interpret brain activity and alert you when you need a break. You also can use the Neurable app to decipher data and determine when you are most productive. If you question where all of this health data is going (and you should), Neuro guarantees that encrypted and de-identified data is stored in secured locations, and your data will never be sold.
Price: Around $500
Macrotellect BrainLink
Unlock your brain's potential with one of Macrotellect's BrainLink wearable devices, which feature a Brain Computer Interface (BCI) to enhance your mental fitness. The devices use a bio-sensing chip and EEG to track brain function, which syncs to the Brainwave app. The neurofeedback technology can assist with improving concentration, efficiency, or relaxation. You can even experiment with mind control. You can wear the hardware with various accessories, such as a headband, sports cap, or earbuds.
Price: Under $300
Sensate
Sensate wearable tech, which uses patented infrasonic technology, claims to diminish stress, anxiety, and insomnia. Worn like a pendant around the neck, soft vibrations are emitted on the chest to soothe the nervous system. In conjunction with the Sensate app, which plays soothing sounds, the wearable device is designed to help users enter a state of peace within 10 minutes.
Price: Under $300
Apple Watch Ultra 2
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is for much more than telling time. It acts as a mini health monitor on your wrist. Use it to track your sleep, heart rate, respiratory rate, body temperature, calories burned, steps taken, menstrual cycle, and more. The watch also alerts you when it detects irregular heart rhythms or sleep apnea. It can notify emergency services if you fall or are in a collision. Built for adventurers, this watch has a durable titanium case that's dust-resistant and water-resistant up to 40 meters deep (you can wear it scuba diving). It also has built-in GPS and cellular service.
Price: Under $1,000

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Over the moon: How the Trump-Musk feud helps the lunar mission
Over the moon: How the Trump-Musk feud helps the lunar mission

Yahoo

time2 days ago

  • Yahoo

Over the moon: How the Trump-Musk feud helps the lunar mission

The alliance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk — to borrow a phrase from the space community — has undergone a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Yet amid all the fireworks Thursday from the duo's public meltdown, one area of the space world seems to have a brighter future: the moon mission. Musk, the SpaceX founder and well-known Mars enthusiast, has argued against returning astronauts to the lunar surface. But the stunning forced exitof the billionaire's handpicked nominee for NASA chief and Musk's massive rupture with the president have handed moon backers in Congress and industry an opening — and they're seizing it. 'Elon was the main reason for the fork in the road for NASA's human exploration plans,' said Clayton Swope, a former congressional adviser on space. 'With his exodus from D.C., there's a good chance NASA will refocus back to the moon with the plan: moon then Mars.' A number of major space companies — just not SpaceX — are launching an ad campaign going big on the moon, according to two industry officials granted anonymity to discuss the effort. The move is the first sign of real pushback against the behemoth space company and its founder, who only days ago seemed to lock down government contracts every time he blinked. A television ad funded by the companies, who do not go by an umbrella name, will appear on television in the coming days with a pitch clearly aimed at Trump. A narrator, underlaid by dramatic images of America's Apollo missions, implores voters to call senators in support of the moon mission and 'keep America first in space.' A separate letter addressed to the Senate Commerce Committee, and obtained by POLITICO, backs investments in the moon, and is signed by a lengthy slate of prominent space companies — but not SpaceX. As the feud between Trump and Musk escalated on Thursday evening, the Senate Commerce Committee unveiled a new reconciliation bill that would channel $10 billion to NASA. Much of it would go to the space agency's effort to return to the moon through the Artemis program. The White House's NASA budget had proposed major cuts to Artemis, including slashing a planned lunar space station and moon missions. 'Anybody who's following space will have noticed how deeply committed [the committee is] to getting back to the moon, particularly before the Chinese get there,' said a committee aide, who was granted anonymity to discuss the bill. All of this is happening amid Musk's very public fall from grace. Trump, during the social media showdown with his former confidante, threatened to cancel Musk's contracts with the government. The SpaceX founder responded by saying he would end the Dragon spacecraft contract, which is the U.S.' only reliable way of accessing the International Space Station. (But he also suggested late Thursday night that he might not actually do so, and Trump played down the dispute in a POLITICO interview.) The president had already abruptly pulled the NASA administrator nomination for Musk ally Jared Isaacman last week, just days ahead of his likely confirmation by the Senate. Isaacman, speaking on a podcast this week, linked his ouster to Musk's provocative departure from the White House. 'I don't think the timing was much of a coincidence,' he said. This all means Congress may now have a stronger hand in negotiations with the White House over the NASA budget, which was written before Musk's break from Trump and heavily favors Mars. The administration's budget proposes major cuts to spending for the moon in favor of nearly $1 billion for landing an astronaut on Mars. SpaceX, thanks to provisions in the bill, was likely to snag a lucrative contract to build the landing system for any red planet mission. That seems much less feasible now. Senators from states with large NASA centers — such as Alabama and Louisiana — are particularly keen to latch on to moon funding. Trump has voiced support for a Mars mission, meaning the idea may not have completely faded. But with Musk's implosion and the latest moon push, a return to the lunar surface is on firmer ground than it was just a week ago. POLITICO PRO SPACE: Need an insider's guide to the politics behind the new space race? From battles over sending astronauts to Mars to the ways space companies are vying to influence regulators, this weekly newsletter decodes the personalities, policy and power shaping the final frontier. Try it for free for a limited time starting today. Find out more.

Over the moon: How the Trump-Musk feud helps the lunar mission
Over the moon: How the Trump-Musk feud helps the lunar mission

Politico

time2 days ago

  • Politico

Over the moon: How the Trump-Musk feud helps the lunar mission

The alliance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk — to borrow a phrase from the space community — has undergone a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Yet amid all the fireworks Thursday from the duo's public meltdown, one area of the space world seems to have a brighter future: the moon mission. Musk, the SpaceX founder and well-known Mars enthusiast, has argued against returning astronauts to the lunar surface. But the stunning forced exit of the billionaire's handpicked nominee for NASA chief and Musk's massive rupture with the president have handed moon backers in Congress and industry an opening — and they're seizing it. 'Elon was the main reason for the fork in the road for NASA's human exploration plans,' said Clayton Swope, a former congressional adviser on space. 'With his exodus from D.C., there's a good chance NASA will refocus back to the moon with the plan: moon then Mars.' A number of major space companies — just not SpaceX — are launching an ad campaign going big on the moon, according to two industry officials granted anonymity to discuss the effort. The move is the first sign of real pushback against the behemoth space company and its founder, who only days ago seemed to lock down government contracts every time he blinked. A television ad funded by the companies, who do not go by an umbrella name, will appear on television in the coming days with a pitch clearly aimed at Trump. A narrator, underlaid by dramatic images of America's Apollo missions, implores voters to call senators in support of the moon mission and 'keep America first in space.' A separate letter addressed to the Senate Commerce Committee, and obtained by POLITICO, backs investments in the moon, and is signed by a lengthy slate of prominent space companies — but not SpaceX. As the feud between Trump and Musk escalated on Thursday evening, the Senate Commerce Committee unveiled a new reconciliation bill that would channel $10 billion to NASA. Much of it would go to the space agency's effort to return to the moon through the Artemis program. The White House's NASA budget had proposed major cuts to Artemis, including slashing a planned lunar space station and moon missions. 'Anybody who's following space will have noticed how deeply committed [the committee is] to getting back to the moon, particularly before the Chinese get there,' said a committee aide, who was granted anonymity to discuss the bill. All of this is happening amid Musk's very public fall from grace. Trump, during the social media showdown with his former confidante, threatened to cancel Musk's contracts with the government. The SpaceX founder responded by saying he would end the Dragon spacecraft contract, which is the U.S.' only reliable way of accessing the International Space Station. (But he also suggested late Thursday night that he might not actually do so, and Trump played down the dispute in a POLITICO interview.) The president had already abruptly pulled the NASA administrator nomination for Musk ally Jared Isaacman last week, just days ahead of his likely confirmation by the Senate. Isaacman, speaking on a podcast this week, linked his ouster to Musk's provocative departure from the White House. 'I don't think the timing was much of a coincidence,' he said. This all means Congress may now have a stronger hand in negotiations with the White House over the NASA budget, which was written before Musk's break from Trump and heavily favors Mars. The administration's budget proposes major cuts to spending for the moon in favor of nearly $1 billion for landing an astronaut on Mars. SpaceX, thanks to provisions in the bill, was likely to snag a lucrative contract to build the landing system for any red planet mission. That seems much less feasible now. Senators from states with large NASA centers — such as Alabama and Louisiana — are particularly keen to latch on to moon funding. Trump has voiced support for a Mars mission, meaning the idea may not have completely faded. But with Musk's implosion and the latest moon push, a return to the lunar surface is on firmer ground than it was just a week ago. POLITICO PRO SPACE: Need an insider's guide to the politics behind the new space race? From battles over sending astronauts to Mars to the ways space companies are vying to influence regulators, this weekly newsletter decodes the personalities, policy and power shaping the final frontier. Try it for free for a limited time starting today. Find out more.

Moon over Musk
Moon over Musk

Politico

time2 days ago

  • Politico

Moon over Musk

Presented by The Spotlight The alliance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk — to borrow a phrase from the space community — has undergone a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Yet amid all the fireworks Thursday from the duo's public meltdown, one area of the space world seems to have a brighter future: the moon mission. Context: Musk, the SpaceX founder and well-known Mars enthusiast, has argued against returning astronauts to the lunar surface. But the stunning forced exit of the billionaire's hand-picked nominee for the top NASA job and Musk's massive rupture with the president has handed moon backers in Congress and industry an opening — and they're seizing it. What's happening, Part I: A ton of major space companies — just not SpaceX — are launching an ad campaign going big on the moon, according to two industry officials granted anonymity to discuss the effort. The move is the first sign of real pushback against the behemoth space company and its founder, who only days ago seemed to lock down government contracts every time he blinked. A television ad funded by the companies, who do not go by an umbrella name, will appear on television in the coming days with a pitch clearly aimed at Trump. A narrator, underlaid by dramatic images of America's Apollo missions, implores voters to call senators in support of the moon mission and 'keep America first in space.' A separate letter addressed to the Senate Commerce Committee and obtained by POLITICO backs investments in the moon, and is signed by a lengthy slate of prominent space companies — but not (you guessed it) SpaceX. What's happening, Part II: The Senate Commerce Committee on Thursday evening unveiled a new reconciliation bill that would channel $10 billion to NASA, much of it for the space agency's effort to return to the moon through the Artemis program. The White House's NASA budget had proposed major cuts to Artemis, including slashing a planned lunar space station and moon missions. 'Anybody who's following space will have noticed how deeply committed [the committee is] to getting back to the moon, particularly before the Chinese get there,' said a committee aide, who was granted anonymity to discuss the bill. SpaceX'd Out: All of this is happening amid Musk's very public fall from grace. Trump, during the social media showdown with his former confidante, threatened to cancel Musk's contracts with the government. The SpaceX founder responded by saying he would end the Dragon spacecraft contract, which is the U.S.'s only reliable way of accessing the International Space Station. (But he also suggested late Thursday night that he might not actually do so.) And of course, Trump last week abruptly pulled the NASA administrator nomination for Musk ally Jared Isaacman, just days ahead of his likely confirmation by the Senate. Isaacman, speaking on a podcast this week, linked his ouster to Musk's provocative departure from the White House. 'I don't think the timing was much of a coincidence,' he said. What next: This all means Congress may now have a stronger hand in negotiations with the White House over the NASA budget, which was written before Musk's break from Trump and heavily favors Mars. The administration's budget proposes major cuts to spending for the moon in favor of nearly $1 billion for landing an astronaut on Mars. SpaceX, thanks to provisions in the bill, was likely to snag a lucrative contract to build the landing system for any red planet mission. That seems much less feasible now. Senators from states with large NASA centers — think Alabama and Louisiana — are particularly keen to latch onto moon funding. Trump has voiced support for a Mars mission, meaning the idea may not have completely faded. But with Musk's implosion and the latest moon push, a return to the lunar surface is on firmer ground than it was just a week ago. WELCOME TO POLITICO PRO SPACE. It's our inaugural edition and a telling time to start. We've seen deep slashes to NASA's budget, the space agency's nominee pulled, and a feud explode between the world's biggest space contractor and the president. We can't wait for next week. Email me at sskove@ with tips, pitches and feedback, and find me on X at @samuelskove. We're offering this newsletter for free over the next few weeks. After that, it will be available only to POLITICO Pro subscribers. Read all about what we're doing here. Galactic Government MAKE A DEAL: Florida Rep. Mike Haridopolos, who chairs the House's subcommittee on space and aeronautics, told me Wednesday that he was against the White House's massive NASA cuts — making him one of the first Republicans to publicly voice opposition. 'Will a 26 percent cut to NASA hold? Absolutely not,' he said. 'We're going to be talking with the president and his team, with OMB about the paramount importance of space.' China: Haridopolos emphasized competition with China as a driving reason not to slash the space agency's funding. The proposed cancellation of Gateway — a lunar space station partnership with the European Space Agency — opens the way for Chinese influence, he said. Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican who leads the committee that oversees NASA, underscored a remarkably similar message during Isaacman's confirmation hearing. The Florida lawmaker said he was optimistic that the cuts wouldn't come to fruition. Trump 'believes in the space program,' he said. 'He knows that we want there's no second place to space.' TICKET TO RIDE: Sens. John Cornyn, Ben Ray Luján, Rick Scott, and Mark Kelly introduced a bill Thursday that would streamline licensing processes for commercial space companies, opening the way to a boom in rocket launches. The bill, dubbed the Launch Act, would allow the Federal Aviation Administration to eliminate overly bureaucratic steps in the application process. The law would also create a streamlined process for licensing commercial satellites used to observe the Earth. And it would move the Office of Space Commerce from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and place it directly under the Transportation secretary, a move that would elevate the office's access to key decision makers. Why it matters: Companies such as SpaceX have long complained about the slow pace of launch licensing. Streamlining the process could lead to a significant uptick in an already booming schedule. Companies launched 145 U.S. rockets in 2024, up from 109 the previous year. Military SPACE COMMAND: Lawmakers pressed Air Force Secretary Troy Meink on Thursday to keep U.S. Space Command in Colorado as the Trump administration weighs moving the headquarters to Alabama. The Defense Department established the command in 2019 and temporarily placed it in Colorado while the Air Force evaluated permanent sites. Trump chose Alabama as the permanent headquarters but former President Joe Biden reversed that decision and selected Colorado. What he said: Meink, in a House Armed Services Committee hearing, conceded that Space Command would see civilian employees quit if the HQ moved from Colorado to Alabama. 'It would be very important that we manage that move over a period of time, if that occurs,' the Air Force chief said. Rep. Jeff Crank (R-Colo.) called for the Pentagon to resume headquarters construction at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, calling it the 'most effective' home for Space Command. Context: Officials have paused construction because of a legal requirement to hold off until the Pentagon inspector general and the Government Accountability Office released their reports on the Biden administration's 2023 basing decision. Those reports are out, but Meink said the Air Force is still reviewing the GAO's findings. The Reading Room — Senate Commerce reconciliation bill proposes new space launch fee: POLITICO — Space Force awards BAE $1.2B for missile warning sats in MEO: Breaking Defense — Impulse Space Raises $300M Series C: Payload — Space Force shifts upfront range upgrade costs to commercial firms: Defense News — Some parts of Trump's proposed budget for NASA are literally draconian: Ars Technica Event Horizon TUESDAY: Axiom-4 launches private astronauts to the International Space Station. The Hudson Institute holds a discussio n on defending in outer space with Rep. Jeff Crank. Rep. George Whitesides speaks with SpaceNews on space issues. FRIDAY: The FAA ends public comments on a launch licensing-related issue. Photo of the Week

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store