Is Fido looking a little chubby? Does he seem to pant even when he’s simply watching a rerun of “Old Yeller?” (Trust me, don’t let him watch the ending…) Then grab his leash, and take him for a walk over to the Apple Store, and grab a Whistle Activity Monitor, which officially goes on sale today in Apple’s North American retail stores.
The monitor – think of it as a Misfit Shine for dogs – has been available for a while now through select retailers and online, but today marks the arrival of the first doggie activity monitor to hit the Apple Store’s shelves.
In honor of the Apple Store launch, Whistle has dropped the price of the activity monitor, while adding features. For $99, new features include a new IFTTT (If This Then That) channel and custom in-app medication reminders. (UGH! Maybe I should buy one for myself, just for the pill reminders! – Ed.)
The Whistle Activity Monitor attaches to your pet’s existing collar, and syncs via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Via an accompanying iOS app, dog owners can then set fitness goals, get activity and medication reminders, and even share updates with family members.
Whistle is also planning on offering a new tracker for canines, called WhistleGPS that will include GPS tracking features for a monthly subscription fee, in addition to the activity tracking offered by the Activity Monitor product. WhistleGPS will run you $129, and the company is now accepting preorders for the new device.
It will be interesting to see if products such as this begin accessing the iOS 8 HealthKit API to track your pet’s fitness and calorie intake. “WTH? It says here that you ate two cans of Alpo, and had two bowel movements while walking on Bell St… Oh, wait… That was Maverick…”
The Whistle Activity Monitor is available starting today in Apple Stores in the U.S. and Canada, as well as Amazon and other retailers for $99.
(Via 9to5Mac)
