Latest Microsoft Band Firmware Brings a Surprise New Feature to the Run Activity

This past Friday (July 17, 2015), Microsoft delivered a surprise firmware update, taking it to version 10.3.3304.0 09 R. After an afternoon run, I plugged the Band into my computer to do a Desktop Sync and the firmware was available. At the time it looked like the firmware provided nothing more than bug fixes. There wasn’t anything new immediately evident.

I was in Orlando earlier last week. It was hot, while temperatures back home (Ohio) were much cooler. My wife has been complaining for weeks that Ohio has missed out on a true summer since the temperatures have been less than normal and it’s been extra rainy. She’s now wishing she hadn’t complained, as it seems I brought the Orlando weather home with me. Yesterday was brutal in Southwest Ohio. The temperature was 93 degrees Fahrenheit and with the humidity, the heat index was reported to be around 104. You’d think weather like this would force me inside for treadmill runs, but…nah…I pulled out 20 miles anyway.

It was brutally hot, which of course, had me sweating like it was my job. About midway through my run I glanced down at my wrist to check distance on the Microsoft Band, however the screen looked different – and not in a good way, I thought. The screen seemed to have double-characters with the top of the screen split into double images. I thought “just great, my Microsoft Band is broken,” thinking the deluge of sweat raining from my forehead had somehow seeped into the Band and trashed it. However, after I finished up my run, the Band seemed fine. I considered it might have been a temporary quirk, but I’d keep an eye on it.

Today (Sunday), I was forced inside on the treadmill due to all-day thunderstorms. Guess what? The screen condition was back. “Great,” I thought. But, after looking a bit deeper, I found that I had actually uncovered a new feature provided by Friday’s firmware update.

What is it?

For Run activities there’s now a second screen that you access by swiping down from the top of the Microsoft Band. Prior to the update, you could only see three (3) stats on the Run screen. You choose these in the Manage Tiles section in the Microsoft Health app. During a run you could also change which run stats display and their order on your band by double-pressing the action button. But, the new sliding overlay eliminates that manual action because it allows you to view a second screen with the rest of the important Run stats. So, you can still choose your primary “glanceable” stats, and still have access to view the rest.

This new feature is not available for Workouts, Guided Workouts, or the Bike tile which would be nice. But, if it works for the Run tile, I’m sure it might be considered as an update for other activities later on.

It’s a bit sad that Microsoft feels it must turn its Microsoft Band customers into feature hunters every time an update is released. It seems to be taking the Microsoft Band team a couple months after a firmware or Microsoft Health app update to provide description information on the update history page. Hey, Microsoft – we really do care about what you’re doing to our devices, particularly if there are useful features included.

Let’s hope the company has a better plan for Windows 10, since it will be continually updated with new features for the next 10 years.

P.S. The one thing still missing from the Run screen (or any activity, for that matter) is the actual time of day, in the event you have a pressing meeting or con-call coming up and you might need to increase your pace to make the schedule. You can check the time by tapping the Power button once (which hides the activity screen), but it would be nice to have this as a stats screen option for a quick glance.