A frequent question around tracker data centers around the timeliness of data provision. How fast is smartwatch data available for digital health services?
In short, expect smartwatch and wearables data being available in near real-time in best cases, taking less than 10 seconds for delivery.
However, a variety of factors determines the actual speed of data delivery from wearables. In this article, we provide insights on the high-level data flow of trackers, as well as the typical determinants that impact the speed of data delivery.
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For a typical consumer tracker integration done via a manufacturer API like Fitbit, Garmin, or Withings, the process of data generation and delivery follows six steps:
1. User records data with a wearable
2. Wearable syncs data with the manufacturer app
3. Manufacturer app uploads data to manufacturer cloud
4. Manufacturer cloud sends a notification to Thryve
5. Thryve retrieves the data and sends a webhook to our customer
6. Customer retrieves the data from Thryve
The user records data with a wearable. As long as the device is close to the connecting smartphone, data is ready for immediate transfer to the manufacturer’s app.
The wearable’s data is synced with the manufacturer’s app. This data transfer from the wearable to the app usually happens automatically in the background. In case of e.g., strict data or energy saving settings of the smartphone´s operating system, this might require a foreground activation of the app.
Once the app of e.g. Fitbit has retrieved the data, it automatically syncs new information with the manufacturers cloud.
Whenever new data is received within a manufacturers cloud, webhooks are usually immediately sent. Polar is a notable exception, which does not yet provide webhooks for its API. From the Polar API, Thryve pulls new data at a maximum delay of 15 minutes.
Thryve connects to all the manufacturers different webhooks, covering this complexity of fast wearable API integration. The time it takes from us receiving a notification by the manufacturer until we notify a customer service via webhook is usually measured in milliseconds.
Data is available for retrieval at Thryve immediately when the webhook is sent.
Thryve ensures that data delivery from all manufacturer clouds is incredibly fast. Nonetheless, a fully real-time delivery depends on the availability of data at the manufacturer cloud. It does happen frequently that the automated background data sync between the wearable device and manufacturer cloud is delayed or blocked by the smartphone until the end user opens the app.
So, it’s safer to build for potential delays in data provision from wearables.
You can also find explanation on important things to know when working with wearable data detailed in the Thryve developer portal, with a dedicated section explaining what influences availability and granularity of data.
Are you building a service that relies on extremely fast provision of data? Have any further questions around the process of data drawing? Drop us a line to find out how Thryve makes the integration a breeze.
