This week cycling in unfamiliar territory may have just gotten a little easily thanks to the newly released Garmin Edge 800, a feature-packed touchscreen GPS device that builds on the industry-leading Edge 500 and Edge 705 models. In additional to tracking statistics for riders, the Edge 800 adds an intuitive touchscreen interface, allowing users to pull up the Garmin BaseCamp route planning, and get access to its BirdsEye Satellite Imagery. The BaseCamp functionality allows users to plan and even preview routes, including elevation changes along the way, and this information can be sent to Edge 800, Edge 705 and Edge 605 devices – meaning you’ll never have to pass out a ride map ever again.
The Edge 800 is truly a biking computer that will appeal to cyclists of all levels, from the casual riders looking for a new route on their weekly group ride, to those who like to go cycle touring and explore distant roads and trails far from home to those looking to wear yellow on the podium. Read the rest of this entry »
No, you can’t send your phone on a run, but you can take it along with you for added benefits. The new touch screen handset Samsung Eternity II, available through AT&T, is packed with features including apps and GPS. The GPS allows for fitness tracking so you can chart your routes and where you biked, ran, or otherwise traversed in a cardiovascular manner. If you explored the trails at a local park and aren’t sure how far you actually went, you can review your journey post-workout and map the trails plus tabulate the distance.
What’s unclear is whether the GPS app just tracks distance, or also calculates grade and elevation so you can see your progress on those hill repeats. The Eternity II also has expandable memory up to 32 GB leaving plenty of room for music to take along on your workout. The two features, plus any upcoming apps available through the AT&T AppCenter, reduce the number of gadgets you take with you for a workout, and puts more power behind that muscle.
Earlier this year Adidas unveiled its miCoach system, which put sensors on a runner’s shoes as well as a device on the arm to measure distance, pace and even stride rate. Users could get a lot of information, and could even sync the data to a website. Now the company has taken the next step by introducing a miCoach application for the iPhone and BlackBerry that is meant to work as a virtual personal and real-time trainer.
As with the miCoach devices, this app utilizes GPS capabilities, where real-time pace-based coaching and tracking is provided. The app essentially transforms a smartphone into a personal guide complete with voice coaching, personalized and sports-specific training regimes, workout calendar and workout feedback. The app also monitors, manages and analyses progress over time. Read the rest of this entry »
The DeLorme PN60w GPS and its SPOT unit let you send messages from any location.
There’s nothing like a “Climbed a category 4, now on the summit” post to Twitter or Facebook. “Just got back to base camp after a category 4 climb to the summit” is a pale substitute. But when you’re out of cell range, those location posts are difficult if not impossible. Many serious hikes and climbs take you out of range. Not only are you unable to text your family, post messages to social networks for your friends, you can’t easily call for help if your hike should come to that.
The DeLorme PN-60w with SPOT Sattelite Communicator is a rugged GPS handheld with the ability to send outgoing messages to email, cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, Fire Eagle, SpotAdventures.com and Geocaching.com. Posts are geotagged and tracked by Google Maps. You might not be able to post a photo with your message, but you can give your precise location. The PN-60w, which runs about $549.95, also has GPX file support to better manage and save waypoint, geocache, and other files. The unit has an elevation profile tool that pinpoints user location; new poer management and display options extend battery life. The PN-60w has 3.5 GB of onboard memory to store maps and aerial imagery. Read the rest of this entry »
The Magellan eXplorist handheld GPS will lead you to any trail and keep you on course.
While you can take your GPS suited for the car on the trail, there are a few distinguishing features of the Magellan eXplorist Outdoor Handheld range. The eXplorist 510, 610 and 710 are made to get in the dirt or even a little bit of surf. The smaller screen, a 3-inch color touch screen, and form factor is about the size of a cell phone. Compared to the size generally used in cars with a larger screen, the palm-size is much more suited for outdoor activity. Each unit has a 3.2 megapixel camera with auto-focus. You’ll probably still want to bring a camera with higher megapixel capability, but the eXplorist series works well to geotag and post photos so you can show off the view of the summit you climbed or the white water you traversed. The three models range from $349 to $549 and include a 30 day free premium membership to geocaching.com.
The Edge 500 fittingly on my Felt road bike, the same brand that the Garmin Transitions Team is riding in the Tour de France.
This past week we had the chance to test out the Garmin Edge 500 GPS-based cycling computer. With this on my bike I’m feeling like I’m ready for the Tour de France – that is if women actually were allowed to race in the most famous of cycling classics. But it helped me on my way for my local training rides.
The very first impression was that this one could be difficult to setup and calibrate. The problem with technology is the more it can do, the more complicated it is to use. But I was more than pleasantly surprised with the ease of the set-up and the versatility that this device offered out of the box. While not the most notable, but certainly appreciated is the fact that this device comes with several rubber loops for securing the computer’s mount to the bike. This is such a small thing, but it is so welcome, especially for anyone who can’t decide the best placement for the mounts, and only realized this after tightening the zip ties.
But the more notable point is that this is a wireless device. So there is no wire to run, making for a cleaning line on the frame, and more importantly making for one less thing to worry about. The Edge 500 can be used without a heart rate monitor, without the sensors. But the version I’m testing came with those items, and all this set up very easily and quickly too. Read the rest of this entry »
The heart rate monitor and GPS device is no longer personal for world football players. Australia’s World Cup players are picking up data via satellite for each player’s workout. Teams get competitive data on their own performance, and their competitors, according to “Socceroos go high-tech to gain an edge over rest of the world,” an article published in The Sydney Morning Herald.
Players down under were able to compare their training to that of their Russian counterparts. Team coaches also use the data to provide support for their players. “We’re analyzing the players’ volumes of sweat and composition so we can accurately predict how much fluid they’ll lose during a game and at training,” Australia’s strength and conditioning coach Darren Burgess told the paper. “We want to have a rehydration strategy for each player.”
It will be interesting to see what other teams and leagues pick up this method of training. Will it lead to real-time data access to personal workouts instead of uploading details upon return from a run?
Garmin Forefunner 110 tracks progress on your workouts so you can keep your eye on pace.
When your feet hit the road, you have different demands on GPS than in your car. You don’t need turn-by-turn directions, you need data. Speed. Distance. Devices for runners are sometimes bulky, sometimes difficult to use. Garmin is about to release its Forerunner 110. This GPS device is a watch, and just about the size of an average sport watch or heart rate monitor. It’s packed with featuers.
Forerunner 110 has GPS and a heart rate monitor. Once you set it at the beginning of a run it tracks where you go on your run and your heart rate. From this data it calculates your pace, distance run, calories burned, and stores the information until you upload it to your profile on Garmin Connect. You can track your training progress, look back on a whole season of running, or just see where you’ve been by keeping data on your profile. This is one addition to the standard heart rate monitor we like.
Add geo-tags to your digital photos with Samsung HZ35W.
You were on a hike. You took a picture of the view from the summit. When people ask, you can give them the general vicinity of the photo, or you can give the exact coordinates via GPS technology built into the camera. Samsung’s HZ35W has GPS technology built in so adventurers can geo-tag digital images. Photos are tagged with longitude and latitude and post the city, state, and country and even reference a map on the camera’s active-matrix OLED (AMOLED) screen.
A 12 megapixel camera with a 24mm wide-angle lens and 15x optical zoom, the HZ35W will snap some impressive pictures as you travel hike the nation’s parks or travel abroad. Back at home you can upload photos with their geo-tagging to show your friends where you’ve been.
Getting there they say is half the fun. We say not getting completely lost is the rest of the fun! The GH-561 makes pre-planning your treks all the easier – whether they be around the neighborhood or around the world. This fully sealed, water resistant device offers GPS navigation with route planning, waypoint and GPS positioning. It can be used to locate and track points anywhere you choose to go, and it can be used with Travel Manager software so you can plot out your trip. It is rugged enough for outdoor travel, including climbing and hiking. And best of all, it will save you from ever saying, “where are we?”
