McDonald's launches wearable then pulls it after kid feels the burn

Burger baron McDonald's' short foray into the fitness-tracking wearables caper has ended badly, with a device called “Step-It” pulled after burning at least one child's arm.

The Step-It was a simple movement tracker bundled into Happy Meals, the slightly-less-salt-and-fat-laden burger boxen the Golden Arches suggests are fine fare for kids.

Arkansas woman Casey Collyar took to Facebook to show injuries she says the device created on her son's arm. McDonald's learned of the injury and, according to Colorado's 9 News removed the devices from Happy Meals across North America.

The device was already controversial, as the irony of Mcdonald's promoting fitness trackers while purveying its fatty fare did not go unremarked-upon. The chain's counter is that Happy Meal toys are all designed to promote either imaginative or physical play.

Those who tested the Step-It reported that it was a bit like McDonald's food: initially appealing but almost instantly disappointing (as even a mild bump registered as activity) and quickly passed to a waste receptacle. ®