Jawbone UP4: The first pure activity tracker capable of NFC payments

“[T]here is so much more you can do to improve people’s life once you have a wearable on the body,” wrote Travis Bogard, vice president of product management and strategy at Jawbone.

“Increasingly we have been using our trackers to help people connect with other devices and services,” he continued. “People love these integrations — particularly the ones that make their lives easier and more efficient.”

Thus, to make Jawbone a thing of luxurious convenience, payment capabilities will be featured on the to-be-released UP4 device.

American Express is partnering with Jawbone for the forthcoming activity tracker, and the alliance marks the first time a purely fitness wearable will include an NFC (near field communication) chip. To enable the NFC payment technology, users will simply have to enter their American Express card information into the UP app in the payments section and save. Oh, and if you don’t already have an AMEX, you can handily apply for one through the UP app.

“We’re delighted to partner with American Express to launch UP4, our most advanced and stylish tracker that’s small enough to wear 24/7,” said Bogard in a press release. “They provided the innovative and forward-thinking approach needed to create this new experience, combined with a sophisticated and robust payment system, and a wide range of supported merchants.”

Aside from the wearable payment roll-out, the Jawbone UP4 will not be much different from the UP3. The form will follow the same sleek design, also adding heart health monitoring and advanced sleep tracking. It will be shipped this summer.

Speaking of shipping, after an unexpected delay announced back in November, UP3 units will finally ship out on April 20th. The delay was due to trouble achieving water resistance up to 10 meters; the UP3 now only guarantees splash protection similar to its other devices.

Stay tuned for our review of the “budget friendly” UP2 ($99), the recently announced slimmer successor to UP24.

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