Alcatel's new smartwatch wants you to move it, move it

IFA 2016: And it's not forgetting about the kids
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Alcatel has unleashed a slew of new wearable devices at IFA 2016, under a new range called Move.

Let's start with the Movetime "Wi-Fi Watch", Alcatel's sort-of sequel to the OneTouch Watch, which offers all the standard notifications you'd expect while also throwing in a bunch of fitness features.

You'll be able to track the basics like steps, calories and distance, while also noting things like water and caffeine intake. Alcatel says the watch will track your heart rate too, but doesn't make it clear if, like the OneTouch, it has a built-in sensor - we're chasing up to find out.

But unlike the OneTouch, Alcatel's new smartwatch adds a microphone so you can make and receive calls straight from the wrist. There are also some nifty-sounding gesture features that let you, for example, rotate your wrist to skip music tracks or activate the camera.

Expect a proprietary OS on this one. The watch will be coming late September, and will be available in silver, dark grey and gold, with an RRP of €169.

Essential reading: Meet Alcatel's Oculus Rift rival

Next up we have what Alcatel calls its "active bracelet". The band functions as a basic fitness tracker, covering metrics like distance, pace and calories as seen in the watch, while also keeping an eye on your sleep patterns.

But the Moveband also offers up some basic smart features, bringing text, email and call notifications to your wrist, though the extent to which these notifications will be viewable/interactive is unclear.

Alcatel says the band has a charge time under two hours, and that it will be bundling the band with its smartphones.

However, Alcatel's not just about watches and virtual reality at this year's IFA, it's also got an interesting GPS device called the Movetrack. The portable tracker is designed to be slipped on a keychain or out on your luggage, allowing you to keep an eye on its location. Alcatel even suggests putting one on your pet's collar.

The Movetrack offers four days of power before needing a juice and will hook up to an app that tells you if your beloved item/animal moves outside of a safe zone.

Speaking of keeping track of things, Alcatel's not forgetting about the kids. It's also launching a new smartwatch for children, following on from its existing Go Watch.

The Move Track&Talk gives parents a direct line to their kids. It's a square-faced smartwatch that lets parents call, send voice messages to, and track the location (thanks to GPS) of the watch from afar.

It can also store five speed-dial numbers for emergencies, and 10 pre-set contacts.

All of Alcatel's new devices will be launching in late September, says the company, with global prices to follow.

Alcatel's new smartwatch wants you to move it, move it



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Hugh Langley

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Now at Business Insider, Hugh originally joined Wareable from TechRadar where he’d been writing news, features, reviews and just about everything else you can think of for three years.

Hugh is now a correspondent at Business Insider.

Prior to Wareable, Hugh freelanced while studying, writing about bad indie bands and slightly better movies. He found his way into tech journalism at the beginning of the wearables boom, when everyone was talking about Google Glass and the Oculus Rift was merely a Kickstarter campaign - and has been fascinated ever since.

He’s particularly interested in VR and any fitness tech that will help him (eventually) get back into shape. Hugh has also written for T3, Wired, Total Film, Little White Lies and China Daily.


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