Commuters can now tap for fares with fitness bands from Garmin

EZ-Link Pte Ltd, Singapore’s largest issuer of CEPAS compliant cards, today announced the launch of EZ-Link Wearables, a new product line featuring smart, stylish wearables offering ez-link payment functions and a new array of lifestyle options.
Focusing on fitness for a start, EZ-Link unveiled the Batman v Superman Fitness Tracker X EZ-Link in collaboration with Watchdata Technologies and the Garmin vívosmart HR with EZ-Link smartwatch in partnership with Garmin Ltd.
Both devices carry the ez-link CEPAS purse for fast, convenient and reliable contactless payments on public transit and at more than 30,000 ez-link acceptance points island-wide. They are also smart health and fitness devices that monitor and record daily activities to support a healthy lifestyle.
“Our vision for EZ-Link Wearables is to give our users new possibilities and freedom, by blending an essential part of their daily journeys – ez-link with different aspects of their lives. We are excited to partner with Garmin and Watchdata Technologies to give both hardcore fitness enthusiasts and more casual active lifestyle seekers options in realising their fitness goals and enjoying their daily commutes with just one stylish device. We are even more excited to be at the core of a wearable revolution for Singapore and the limitless possibilities we can bring to consumers in the future,” said Mr Nicholas Lee, Chief Executive Officer, EZLink Pte Ltd.
“Last year, we integrated a similar contactless chip into the vívosmart HR band in Taiwan which lets users pay for train rides, bus trips and retail purchases via the I-Pass electronic wallet stored within the chip. This collaboration with EZ-Link puts Singapore on the road map as the first country in South-east Asia to offer a contactless payment solution where you can pay for public transport rides with a tap of your wearable on your wrist. Integrating the latest smarts, such as innovative payment solutions, into our wearable devices is one of the key pillars of our ongoing efforts to help consumers experience new ways of convenience in their daily life,” said Al Sundoro, General Manager, Garmin South Asia.

“We are so honored and excited to introduce the Batman v Superman Fitness Tracker X EZLink, also known as ‘Sharkey’, as the first smart wearable with ez-link card payment function for consumers in Singapore. It is an inspiring result after a long period of joint research and development with EZ-Link to bring a seamless travel experience and healthier lifestyle option to all commuters daily. This milestone marks the beginning of a new era for smart wearable technology and we are ready to work with EZ-Link to bring more products with our leading edge technologies and innovations in payment and data security in near future,” said Mr. Richard Ni, Sales Manager, Payment & ID Asia, Watchdata Technologies Pte Ltd.
Designed and developed by EZ-Link and Watchdata Technologies, the Batman v Superman Fitness Tracker X EZ-Link combines both the functionalities of a smart fitness band and an ez-link card. Besides using it to tap and pay for trains, buses, taxis and shopping, users can also pair it with the Watchdata Wearables mobile application via Bluetooth to monitor the number of steps taken, amount of calories burnt and sleep quality.
Featuring the legendary symbols of two iconic super heroes, theBatman v Superman Fitness Tracker X EZ-Link will be available exclusively on My EZ-Link Online Shop from 24 January 2017, 11am at S$42.80 inclusive of GST.
As for the vívosmart HR, it offers 24/7 steps, sleep and fitness activity tracking. It also has heart-rate monitor for fitness enthusiasts who want to make sure that they are exercising in the optimal heart-rate zone. It pairs with a smartphone via Bluetooth and once connected, the user can receive notifications such as WhatsApp messages and Facebook posts on the fitness band instead of having to constantly check the phone.