Philips releases suite of connected health devices

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Philips has released a suite of personal health devices centered around a new health management platform, reports Ars Technica.

The devices include a fitness-tracking watch, a pair of scales, a thermometer, and blood pressure cuffs, allowing customers to track a more complete picture of their health rather than just looking at movement and exercise.

The Philips suite looks to orient health tracking longitudinally. Individuals will be able to track long-term concerns through this suite of products. Users with chronic conditions, such as hypertension, will be able to regularly monitor their blood pressure and view trends in their condition, allowing them to see the difference between a steady shift and a sudden, possibly alarming change.

Consumers will also be able to share their health data with health care professionals, reports Digitaltrends. This integration has the potential to set the suite apart from competitors, though it would rely on consumers working with doctors willing to partake in that ecosystem. Further, the cost and number of devices in the Philips suite will work against widespread adoption. The move to longer-term health tracking, as opposed to fitness tracking, could be the future of health-based wearables, adding to the longitudinal patient record to improve healthcare.

The health sector is the most promising area for wearables adoption. Several emerging consumer and professional healthcare trends, which dovetail with advances in health technology over the past five years, are driving interest in wearables. And where wearables are most commonly used for fitness-tracking purposes at the moment, they show great potential for widespread adoption in the healthcare sector.

BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report entitled The Wearables in the Healthcare Sector Report that examines the use cases for wearables in health, ranging from consumers collecting fitness data to healthcare providers and insurers using wearables to improve health outcomes.

The report also explores barriers to widespread adoption of wearables in healthcare and how tech giants, including Apple, Google, and Samsung, are developing devices and platforms that will help bridge the gap between fitness tracking and actual medical care.

Here are some key points from the report:

• While adoption levels are growing, the wearables market is still in the early phases of expansion. We estimate global shipments will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24.8% over the five years, reaching 162.9 million units in 2020.
• Emerging consumer and professional healthcare trends are driving interest in wearables. For consumers, interest in quantifying personal health metrics is translating into demand for fitness tracking devices and smartwatches. Meanwhile, businesses in a variety of industries have been quick to sense the opportunities for harnessing health data from employees, consumer, and patients to help drive efficiencies and enhance services related to healthcare.
• Barriers remain blocking the widespread adoption of wearables in the healthcare sector. Device accuracy and regulation are two major sticking points for device makers and technologists to address. Concerns surrounding privacy and a lack of utility must also be addressed.
• Consumer-facing products will eventually be used for more advanced medical care. Tech giants, including Apple, Google, and Samsung, are investing significant resources into developing devices that will help bridge the gap between fitness tracking and actual medical care. Future products will serve both consumer and professional markets.

In full, the report:

• Looks at areas of the healthcare sector where wearables may have a tangible impact in years to come.
• Examines what broader trends in healthcare and technology are driving wearables adoption.
• Discusses how major tech players, including Apple, Google, and Samsung plan on transforming consumer wearables into powerful healthcare devices.
• Identifies the top hurdles to wearables adoption in the healthcare sector.

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