While there are plenty of top fitness trackers to choose from, Whoop is one of the most popular. The Whoop 5.0 was unveiled last week with some big upgrades. I’m most excited about the new blood pressure feature and am ready to swap out my Apple Watch Ultra. But there was one big problem, which Whoop has already fixed, despite the tracker not being available yet.
Whoop managed to enrage its most loyal customers before shipping a single device. It took the decision to quietly bin a core part of its membership promise. But after a week of outrage and Reddit breakdowns, the fitness brand has reversed course.
For those not immersed in the wearables cult, Whoop’s business model is all about subscriptions. You don’t buy the tracker outright. Rather, you pay monthly or annually and they chuck in the hardware as part of the deal. One of the big draws has always been that you’d get upgraded to the latest model at no extra cost, provided you’d stuck around for at least six months.
When Whoop announced the 5.0, it suddenly asked members to either cough up a one-off upgrade fee or extend their membership by another 12 months. The move especially stung because people had screenshots of Whoop’s site from late March saying you’d get a free upgrade after six months. As in, two weeks before the 5.0 was revealed.
Whoop tried to claim that the six-month thing was a mistake, and that the real policy was 12 months all along. Which might be more believable if it weren’t for the blog posts, press interviews, and previous upgrade paths all saying the exact opposite. The brand now says anyone with more than 12 months left on their subscription is eligible for a free upgrade to the 5.0. The rest will still need to either extend their plan or pay the $49 upgrade fee. Or a $79 fee if you want the fancier Whoop 5.0 MG with built-in EKG sensors.
Some are cautiously pleased with the change. Others still feel burned, especially those with 11 months remaining who are being told that’s somehow not good enough. Still, Whoop seems to have fixed the biggest problem with its tracker, before it’s even out.
The Whoop 5.0 fitness tracker will be available later this year. Prices remain tied to subscription status. Existing members with over 12 months left can now upgrade for free. For new customers, the Whoop 5.0 comes “free” with either the Whoop One or Peak memberships, which start at $199/£169 per year. Or for the MG version, you’ll need to cough up for Whoop Life at $359/£349 annually.
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