After a long time of delay, the "Pokemon Go Plus" wearable accessory is about to go on sale to the public again. Just a few hours after Niantic appeared on stage during the launch of Apple's iPhone 7, Nintendo and the Pokemon Company announced the release date of the device. The wearable mobile game accessory is now available for pre-order yet again, and will be shipping starting on the 16th of September.
Forbes reported that pre-orders for the wearable device initially opened when the official pricing was announced in E3 back in June, and shipping was all set for July. It sold out immediately which led some opportunistic buyers to sell their guaranteed slots for the device for almost ten times of what they paid for it.
The wearable device, which costs $34.99, further enhances the augmented reality experience of the game by notifying players when a Pokemon is near. It does so by vibrating and flashing lights and with a simple push of a button, players can throw a Pokeball in an attempt to catch such Pokemon. Niantic also adds that this device makes collecting items easier since when a player passes by a PokeStop, items can be collected by just clicking the device.
Gizmodo cited that the wearable looks like a Pokeball styled map pin but is more than just a hunk of plastic that flashes and vibrates when any in-game activity occurs. It will make the gaming experience much easier as it will allow a player to catch Pokemon and collect items without pulling out his or her phone. The wearable "Pokemon Go Plus" connects through a phone, whether it is iOS or Android powered, through Bluetooth version 4.0 and will be available for the whole world on September 16.
The launch of the "Pokemon Go Plus" would have been bigger if it was done a few weeks ago, since it is reported that active users have drastically declined. While most would see that as tragic, it appears that it only is another opportunity for the team behind "Pokemon Go" to innovate and make the game even better.