Smartwatches.. they seem so interesting, and are going through so many rapid revisions lately. Apple, Samsung, LG,…
Like ‘em or leave ‘em, smart watches are hard to ignore. Once the domain solely of the…
Smart watches are a category that I have really wanted to like more than I actually do….
I have reviewed a few different watches that would fall into the smartwatch category, but none that…
The Timex iQ+ Move offers connected watch versions for both men and women with activity and sleep tracking and an Indiglo backlight for $150.
Smartwatches including basic fitness tracking (ie, steps taken) abilities these days are not much of a surprise. Then again, I would argue that many people simple do not have a need (or would truly make use of) a smartwatch. To that end, something like the just-announced Fitbit Blaze – a fitness tracker with some additional connected smarts – may be a better fit for some.
When it comes to the connected watches, we often see that they bundle in some sort of step tracking, as quantifying our lives has become all the rage (myself included). The Wellograph I looked at did get more into the realm of monitoring more things relevant for fitness (including a heart rate monitor), but it was not something that would feel particularly right on the wrist at the gym or out on the trails. For myself, I have found myself spending more time in the gym, and my Fitbit – while a tidy little tracker for daily use – was not giving me the full picture I wanted. That then brings us to my new workout companion, the Garmin Forerunner 920XT.
Welcome to Watch Video Rewind, our (generally) weekly round up of watch related videos we feel are of interest. This week, I thought I would focus on some of the smartwatches out there that are not being produced by the phone/tech giants, but are rather being created by watch companies.
When the biggest name in the watch industry decides to get into the smart watch/fitness tracker business, you expect a watch that is made for the masses. What you don’t expect is a watch made for a niche sport; but then again, Swatch does not do things in the normal way. The Swatch Touch Zero One is, as the name implies, the first watch in a planned ecosystem of fitness watches tied to the sports that Swatch supports.
When it comes to smart watches, there is no denying the amount of weight the name the Apple Watch carries in the segment (even if there is some question as to how well it is selling). For me, wearing a second device (or something that completely displaces a standard watch) is just about a non-starter. When you get into things that add a phone connection to the strap (like we saw on this TokyoFlash), then the argument becomes a lot more compelling. I have a feeling that we will see more of this sort of combination, and the Javelin Dayrunner is one of the latest to come to my attention.