Did Under Armour shove too much health into its $400 box?

Under Armour HealthBox

A wearable band forms only part of a whole connected fitness package from Under Armour. Comprising a band, a strap, connected shoes and scales, the HealthBox package aims to sync up all your fitness data to give you a thorough overview of how well you're training.

It's going on sale in the US later in January for $400 and is set for a wider release later in the year.

How much would you pay to get healthy? I'm not sure I know the answer. I pay a lot for doctor's appointments, and gym memberships aren't cheap. Fitness bands seem relatively affordable after factoring all that in.

Under Armour, the Baltimore-based athletic apparel company, is asking that you pony up a fair amount for its HealthBox: a new $400 package of fitness band, heart-rate chest strap and smart scale that'll be available later this month, starting in the US. The UK price is £349. Australian details are yet to be announced, but $400 converts to around AU$575. Most good fitness trackers cost $150, max. Heart-rate chest straps, maybe $50. And smart scales can be had for $150 or less. So, this isn't exactly a bundle deal.

Still, Under Armour and HTC, which has collaborated on the HealthBox, are hoping you'll see the benefits of integrated design. The heart-rate chest strap can work with the wrist-worn UA Band to offer more accurate heart readings during exercise, for instance.

I've been using the HealthBox, off and on, for a few weeks. Sometimes more off than on (I'll explain why in a moment). And, so far...I'm not sure I see why you'd want to buy in on everything. I certainly wouldn't. But HealthBox proves that connected fitness is about more than just a band. You just don't need everything to come from one manufacturer.

Parts of HealthBox will be sold on their own later on: the band, the heart strap and the scale. But for now they're bundled in one set. A package like this is hard to rate -- I'd rather revisit each part separately and rate those against the alternatives. In short: no, I don't think you need to buy a $400 Under Armour fitness box set, not even if everything in your closet is made by Under Armour.

Which brings me to: the UA Band.