Among Android phone makers, Samsung has consistently been ahead of the pack in including health apps and functionality on its phones -- or at least in paying them lip service. The South Korean company announced its S Health app last year and then upped the ante in March, when it launched its Galaxy S4 phone with the promise of an optional suite of connected health devices that would interact with the app.

Now, it appears the company is poised to go further, adding a second, companion app with a gamification element. S Health Buddy, an app which features a cartoon avatar who loses weight along with the user, was recently added to the Google Play store (in Korean only) and announced in Korea. According to a Samsung spokesperson, the company "has not announced an English version or any US-specific plans."

The app features five different avatar characters with customizable outfits, and also includes a leaderboard and a badge system to motivate exercisers. Graphics from the website suggest that S Health Buddy can reward users for walking, running, biking, and even swimming, which could suggest that users either manually enter data or that the app is designed to work with the S Band tracking bracelet, which, as MobiHealthNews previously reported, is waterproof.

The S Band was advertised as a connected peripheral to the Galaxy S4 in March, along with a heart rate monitoring chest strap and a connected weight scale. All three were supposed to be available in April, but they are still not available for purchase in the US or UK. They are still listed on the company's website, but not in its online store. MobiHealthNews has learned that launch may still be some months away.

"S Health peripherals, specifically the Heart Rate Monitor Band and Connected Weight Scale, will be available before the end of the year," the company told MobiHealthNews in an email. "Samsung is working on perfecting the S Band and will announce when we're ready for its commercial launch."

The existing S Health app includes exercise tracking, food tracking, and blood glucose tracking, as well as a novel feature that measures ambient temperature and humidity. The prospect of a new S Health Buddy app comes at an ample time: weight loss apps are in vogue in the popular press, after being cited in a Weight Watchers investor call as a reason the legacy company was losing business.