March 13--Fitness bands such as Jawbone UP and Nike's FuelBand are in short supply at some Chicago Apple stores after the tech giant said it would begin selling its Apple Watch on April 24.
The Apple Watch, which connects with an iPhone to send texts and answer phone calls, also includes a fitness component, ostensibly driving the decision to pull competitors' fitness bands from Apple stores.
A representative at the Lincoln Park Apple Store said the Jawbone UP disappeared from its shelves within the past few months, while Nike's FuelBand hasn't been carried there since last year. The Michigan Avenue store still has the Jawbone UP in stock, but no longer carries the FuelBand, according to a store representative.
The Apple Watch features an activity monitor, accelerometer and a built-in heart-rate sensor, and offers detailed workout metrics for activities such as walking, running and cycling. The devices are priced from $349 to more than $10,000.
The decision to pull competitive fitness bands was first reported by Re/Code, which found that major Apple stores in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York no longer carried the products.
It's not the first time Apple has pulled a competing product once it begins selling its own. Apple pulled Bose headphones from its stores in October, two months after it completed its purchase of Beats headphones.
rchannick@tribpub.com
