Amazon will stop selling its Halo health and fitness devices, the company announced on Wednesday.
“We recently made the very difficult decision to stop supporting Amazon Halo effective July 31, 2023,” the company said in a statement shared online.
Aware that folks who recently forked out for a Halo device may be more than a little annoyed to hear the news, Amazon promised it will offer a full refund to anyone who bought a Halo product in the last 12 months.
Unused prepaid Halo subscription fees will also be refunded, and as of Wednesday, anyone with a paid subscription will no longer be charged the monthly fee, Amazon said.
The decision to shut down its Halo unit means that from August 1, 2023, Amazon’s Halo devices, and the Amazon Halo app, will no longer work.
Anyone who wishes to download or delete their Halo health data should do so soon by going to the Settings page in the app as any remaining Halo health data will be deleted after August 1.
Employees working on Halo products are also affected by the decision, though Amazon didn’t reveal how many. It did say, however, that anyone losing their job as a result of Halo’s closure will receive packages comprising a separation payment, transitional health insurance benefits, and external job placement support.
Amazon introduced the first Halo fitness band in 2020, followed by the Halo View band the following year.
The effort marked a bold bid to take on leaders in the fitness-tracker space such as Fitbit, though Amazon also faced strong competition from smartwatch makers if shoppers were willing to spend more.
The devices record a user’s activity, body fat, sleep, and emotional state, and also work with Amazon’s digital assistant, Alexa.
Only seven months ago, Amazon added a bedside sleep tracker called the Halo Rise to its Halo range.
But now the company has evidently had a change of heart and has decided to bring the curtain down on its Halo effort.
The announcement comes as Amazon — along with many other tech giants — battles challenging economic conditions, prompting it to restructure its workforce with the loss of thousands of positions across multiple divisions.
If Halo’s demise means that you’re now on the hunt for a new fitness tracker, Digital Trends has you covered.
