Apple buys sleep tracking firm Beddit

Posted:
in General Discussion edited May 2017
Beddit, known for its sleep tracking hardware and software, this week announced it has been purchased by Apple for an undisclosed sum.




The acquisition was quietly announced through an update to Beddit's privacy policy on Monday. Users were alerted to the change on Tuesday when Beddit rolled out an update for its iOS app.
Beddit has been acquired by Apple. Your personal data will be collected, used and disclosed in accordance with the Apple Privacy Policy.
Details of the purchase are scarce, though it appears Beddit owners can continue to use their products for the foreseeable future.

Currently, Beddit markets a sleep monitor that slips beneath a user's sheets to track movement, heart rate and other biometric data during sleep sessions. Armed with force, capacitive touch, humidity and temperature sensors, the thin pad is capable of measuring heart rate, breathing rates, environmental variables and more to provide a holistic overview of user sleep patterns. Owners who grant the accompanying iOS app access to iPhone's microphone can also enable snoring detection.

Data collected by the sensor-laden device is automatically transmitted to a host iPhone, which subsequently stores and breaks down the information into easily digestible graphs. The goal is to improve sleep quality by tracking measurable metrics, which allows users to change sleep habits or environmental conditions.

Beddit also integrates with HealthKit for comprehensive health tracking and data viewing via Apple's Health app and Apple Watch.

Apple sells Beddit's latest offering, the $150 Beddit 3, through its online and brick-and-mortar stores.

While Apple has yet to comment on the purchase, Beddit and its team are likely bound for the tech giant's growing biomedical engineering group. It can be speculated that Apple plans to integrate some form of sleep tracking functionality into Apple Watch, the company's flagship wearable platform. As it stands, Apple Watch's battery life precludes the device from all-day wear, though future versions might improve uptime to the point where users can wear it during sleep.

Apple has increased focus on health and wellness products since the launch of HealthKit and Apple Watch in 2014, going so far as to position the new Apple Watch Series 2 as a do-all fitness device. Most recently, a report last month claimed Apple is working on noninvasive glucose sensors for tracking blood sugar levels, technology widely considered to be a "holy grail" of modern medical science.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 19
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    "I'd buy that for a dollar... er, ninety-nine cents!"
    Kenster999
  • Reply 2 of 19
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    The iPhone 7S will have this technology; just sleep on top of it and it will do all the sensing it needs.
  • Reply 3 of 19
    calicali Posts: 3,494member
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.
  • Reply 4 of 19
    22july201322july2013 Posts: 3,564member
    On the one had I'd love to be able to see my heartbeat over a 24 hour period, including night. I bought an Apple Watch and I can check my hearbeat any time I want, but I still haven't been able to figure out how to see it spread out over a 24 hour period. Can anyone tell me how to do this? Ideally I'd like to put the data into Numbers.

    P.S. I'm single, but I'm not sure how Beddit would work with multiple people on one bed (N>=2).
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 19
    netroxnetrox Posts: 1,415member
    I have Beddit and it works for a while and it starts to lose its efficiency. I like that it tracks respiration and heartbeat rate. 


    pscooter63
  • Reply 6 of 19
    rogifan_newrogifan_new Posts: 4,297member
    cali said:
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.
    I sleep with my Watch on right now. No battery life issues.
    king editor the grate
  • Reply 7 of 19
    I charge my Series 0 for less than an hour each evening, wear it to bed, and top it off in morning. I'm at 70 percent 12 hours after arising. I haven't used the workout app today, but I use the magical snot out of the Watch every day.
  • Reply 8 of 19
    On the one had I'd love to be able to see my heartbeat over a 24 hour period, including night. I bought an Apple Watch and I can check my hearbeat any time I want, but I still haven't been able to figure out how to see it spread out over a 24 hour period. Can anyone tell me how to do this? Ideally I'd like to put the data into Numbers.

    P.S. I'm single, but I'm not sure how Beddit would work with multiple people on one bed (N>=2).
    I use the Cardiogram app. It's fairly savory.
  • Reply 9 of 19
    gadgetgwgadgetgw Posts: 1member
    I also sleep with watch. Top off battery just before sleep whilst reading. Use Sleep++ to monitor nocturnal activity. Then recharge whilst showering. 

    PS also use Theatre mode to prevent Watch lighting up during night & disturbing spouse. 
    GeorgeBMacargonaut
  • Reply 10 of 19
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    cali said:
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.
    I do't know why you'd have both of these at once.
  • Reply 11 of 19
    Anilu_777Anilu_777 Posts: 521member
    cali said:
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.
    I use my Apple Watch with the Sleep++ app for sleep tracking. To enable this 24 hour use, I charge the Watch up while I'm getting ready for bed, wear overnight, then charge agin before I go out for the day. It works for me. 
  • Reply 12 of 19
    sergiozsergioz Posts: 338member
    I use Sleep Cycle and you don't have to put the phone in your bed, which is kind of creepy especially if it's plugged in! Sleep Cycle has two detection modes: one is through motion detection and the second through the microphone: The built-in microphone is used to analyze your movements as you sleep including the new feature that detects your snoring pattern.
    https://www.sleepcycle.com/how-it-works/
  • Reply 13 of 19
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    cali said:
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.
    Where are you getting new battery chemistry to enable such a thing from this article?
    edited May 2017
  • Reply 14 of 19
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    cali said:
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.

    What real benefit will you get with 3 day battery life, vs 1 or 1.5 day battery life? Saving 2 seconds every 3rd day by not throwing it on the charger at some point during 24 hrs or before you go to bed? I really don't get it. 
    patchythepirateargonaut
  • Reply 15 of 19
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    slurpy said:
    cali said:
    Finally!

    hope this means sleep tracking on Apple Watch and 3 day battery life. Even better if they can integrate true wireless charging.
    What real benefit will you get with 3 day battery life, vs 1 or 1.5 day battery life? Saving 2 seconds every 3rd day by not throwing it on the charger at some point during 24 hrs or before you go to bed? I really don't get it. 
    For me, 3 days would be useful for camping, which I do several times a year. I can already get 3 days because I disable the wireless radios so it's used for fitness tracking (I do wish it had an altimeter), so doubling it from having about 1.5 days may allow for not even having to bring any lipstick-size battery pack. 
    edited May 2017 razorpit
  • Reply 16 of 19
    applesauce007applesauce007 Posts: 1,698member
    Wow, Go figure...
    One day Beddit is a tiny company and the next day boom! they are an $ 800 Billion gorilla.
    Way to go Beddit.
  • Reply 17 of 19
    ddawson100ddawson100 Posts: 513member
    The iPhone 8 is going to be a bed! You heard that here first.
  • Reply 18 of 19
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,305member
    On the one had I'd love to be able to see my heartbeat over a 24 hour period, including night. I bought an Apple Watch and I can check my hearbeat any time I want, but I still haven't been able to figure out how to see it spread out over a 24 hour period. Can anyone tell me how to do this? Ideally I'd like to put the data into Numbers.

    P.S. I'm single, but I'm not sure how Beddit would work with multiple people on one bed (N>=2).
    The Apple Watch charges pretty quickly. So what I generally do is throw it on the charger a hour before bed which will give it enough time to fully charge. In the morning, I'll throw it on the charger as I'm doing the whole bathroom routine, so about 15 minutes which is enough to top it off back to 100% again. So it's mostly on. The App I like to use for Sleep Monitoring is called HeartWatch, and it's also tracking your heartbeat.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 19 of 19
    On the one had I'd love to be able to see my heartbeat over a 24 hour period, including night. I bought an Apple Watch and I can check my hearbeat any time I want, but I still haven't been able to figure out how to see it spread out over a 24 hour period. Can anyone tell me how to do this? Ideally I'd like to put the data into Numbers.

    P.S. I'm single, but I'm not sure how Beddit would work with multiple people on one bed (N>=2).
    The actual sensor strip that slips under the mattress only goes about 1/2 the width of the mattress so you would place one on each side if you were sleeping with a partner.
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