Mobile Phone | Evolving Consumer

Unbundled Trainer Accessories

Indoor trainer maker Kinetic announced a new pricing structure for its inRide Watt Meter and Bluetooth Smart Heart Rate Strap. While previously sold together each is now available as two separately packaged products. While bundled together for $229, consumers can now purchases the inRide Watt Meter for $159, while the Kinetic Bluetooth Smart Heart Rate Strap has a suggested retail of $70.

“We’re listening to cyclists,” explained David Simpson, Kinetic’s marekting manager. “Quite a few already have heart rate straps, offering the inRide pod separately saves them money and eliminates the redundancy of purchasing a second one. As for customers who only want a heart rate strap, ours is a great option that is compatible with inRide and over 50 different fitness Apps.”

Introduced in 2012 the Kinetic inRide is compatible with all Kinetic fluid trainers, while the inRide app offers five different data screens, allowing riders to focus on wattage or heart rate with features such as time-in-zone measurement, programmable rider data, calorie burn, and ride history. The Kinetic Bluetooth 4.0 Heart Rate Strap wirelessly pairs with the free Kinetic inRide App, as well as any of over 50 popular fitness Apps, including Strava and MapMyRide, to measure heart rate.

Kinetic Trainers Official Website

LeMond Powers Up

With winter in full fear many cyclists are likely stuck on trainers. But LeMond is now offering an optional wireless power meter attachment for its LeMond Revolution stationary trainers. This add-on, which will retail for around $250, will help cyclists monitor their power a little more closely.

The WattBox, which can connect to a smartphone app and bike computer via ANT+, can calculate wattage based on the trainer’s wind resistance unit, and take into account air temperature, humidity and altitude. This can in turn provide an accurate reading based on the amount of air moved by the resistance unit’s fan.

“Now anyone with a LeMond Revolution trainer can effectively gauge their output,” said company founder Greg LeMond. “Research in cycling performance always brings us back to the most critical reading, which is wattage,” LeMond said. “Knowing this number and working with it opens the door to knowledge and improved riding. By creating the WattBox, we are putting the processor in the WattBox unit, which allows any software update in the future or a small hardware change.”

LeMond Official Website

Making Tracks

If hitting the slopes early means a lot to you then the First Tracks app for Android and iOS devices is something that should be on the phone. This isn’t just an alarm, it actually will wake you early if snow has fallen and there is fresh powder to enjoy. On the other hand if conditions remain unchanged then the alarm will go off at the normal time so you can get your beauty sleep.

First Tracks Official Website

Shimano Gets in on the Action

This month Shimano announced that it was entering the action camera market. The CM-1000 Sport Camera (MSRP: $299) will be available in May and is the first product from the company’s Lifestyle Gear Division, which targets both the fishing and cycling markets, and will be able to be integrated with existing Shimano electronics.

This HD camera can record video and stills, and features an F2.0 lens that will be good for low-light conditions, and offers dual, standard angle 135 degree and super wide 180 degree modes, while also providing a 90 degree increment auto-image rotation. That feature will allow users to flip the camera and still maintain a horizontal image plane.

The CM-1000 weighs in at 86 grams and will be waterproof to 10 meters without an external case. It offers ANT+ wireless connectivity as well as Wi-Fi and works with its own Android and iOS apps.

Shimano Official Website

Weekend Reading List (02.01.2014): Fat Summit, Super Apps, Cold Runnings

Fat Summit

From Bicycle Retailer: Fat Bike Summit: It’s time to develop rules for the sport
Mike Van Abel, IMBA’s executive director, told more than 110 participants at the annual Fat Bike Summit that it’s time to develop rules to guide the use of fat bikes on public land and private property. Continue reading Weekend Reading List (02.01.2014): Fat Summit, Super Apps, Cold Runnings

Mobile Running Coach

Sometimes a good coach can motivate you to work harder and go further. Since not everyone can have such a coach the Personal Running Trainer app will be there instead. Designed to help beginning runners train for distance running it provides professional and motivational coaching instructions that voices over personalized music selection, and with this is there to tell you when to change pace and when to rest.

Users can even track other runners using the same program. It is the next best thing to your own coach, and this app is available in nine languages and for Android and iOS devices.

Personal Running Trainer Official Website

Set it Up

App-uncture, which makes mobile phone apps for mountain bikers, has released the Bike Setup app. Users can enter as much or as little setup information as they like and this helps riders determine the best fixed dimensions and bicycle suspension. Currently it is available for iOS 7 or later, and is available now for $0.99. For less than a buck you can help tune up the bike’s suspension to truly suit your needs. Demo video after the jump

One Xtreme Lizard

Snow Lizard’s new SLXtreme 5 has your iPhone 5/5S covered. Designed for those who like to head off the beaten path these ultra-rugged, waterproof cases also feature battery-boosting technology. These offer an integrated 2550mAh battery that can more than double the life of the handset, and the cases also offer a built-in solar panel for emergency charging on the go.

These cases can also help ensure a phone can survive some wild water adventures and the SLXtreme 5 can handle being submerged up to six feet and has an IP-68 rating. It even provides functionality for underwater photography.

“The SLXtreme line has a proven track record of protecting and enhancing iPhone usage while tackling the harshest outdoor conditions,” says Steve Calle, CEO and co-founder of Snow Lizard Products. “We are excited for consumers to check out the SLXtreme for the iPhone 5/5S as it shields against drops, spills, providing peace of mind that their investment is protected.”

The case is further certified with MIL SPEC 810G rating, and thus can protect the phone from a six feet (two meter) falls as well as from dust and sand. This new model case has also been updated to include a 3.5mm audio input jack allowing users to listen to their favorite tunes, and watertight plug to keep it waterproof. The SLXtreme 5 is now available in Black, Orange, Yellow, White or Hunter Camo.

Snow Lizard SLXtreme 5 Official Website

Reign It In

There may be a new fitness monitor that is looking to take the top spot. The Reign Activity Tracker from Jaybird rules by providing more flexibility – not so much in letting you slack off in your workouts, but rather by featuring materials that shape to your wrist over time. There are eight interchangeable size options and this provides just enough customization. This activity monitor is compatible with Android, iOS and web apps and features wireless connectivity. It tracks your sleep and daily activities and helps you “reign” in your workout.

Jaybird Reign Activity Tracker Official Website

Schwinn Navigated CES

Earlier this month at CES in Las Vegas Schwinn unveiled its new CycleNav Smart Bike Navigator, a free mobile application that is paired with a handlebar-mounted smart-bike navigation unit. It is designed to give riders turn-by-turn audio and visual navigation from their handlebars.

When connected to a smart phone via Bluetooth the device can provide riders with audio commands and visual light indicators and this way can direct riders to the desired destination. In addition, the CycleNav application records key statistics from the journey including distance, duration and calories burned. This ride data can be shared through social networking integration including MapMyRide, and the CycleNav also includes a headlight. Continue reading Schwinn Navigated CES

Wahoo Heads to the Sky

This month Wahoo Fitness announced that it is now the official supplier of Turbo Trainers to Team Sky, winners of the 2012 and 2013 Tour de France. Through this exclusive partnership Team Sky will be provided with KICKRs for use during the racing season and each rider will be provided with an individual KICKR for “at home” training sessions. Team Sky will use the KICKRs for pre-race warm up and post-race warm downs.

“Wahoo Fitness is a young and innovative company, who has produced a fantastic product in the KICKR which will meet our requirements both in racing and training,” said Tim Kerrison, Team Sky’s head of performance support. “Team Sky and Wahoo share a common approach when it comes to innovation and continuous improvement. We believe they have developed a market-leading product and we are excited about using the KICKR in the team and working with Wahoo to continue to develop and improve their products. We love the wheel-off design and the big fly-wheel which gives an excellent, smooth feel. The ability to precisely control the resistance, whilst retaining the smoothness, gives us the opportunity to do great quality and high intensity training efforts on the KICKR.”

“It is awesome that Team Sky chose us to work with as it further validates our rapid growth and shows the world that Wahoo Fitness has created the best trainer ever,” added Chip Hawkins, CEO of Wahoo Fitness. “This collaboration gives us the opportunity to develop future products while enhancing existing products in cooperation with an organization who understands the kind of training necessary to win. We look forward to a successful 2014 and Wahoo Fitness equipment quickly becoming synonymous with victory.”

The KICKR Power Trainer can connect to smartphones and tablets via Bluetooth 4.0 and ANT+ wireless technology, and offers full resistance during training sessions. While pedaling, users can increase or decrease resistance, structure interval workouts or even simulate real world bike courses all from their smartphone. Resistance adjustments are also instant, making it easy to replicate everything from a flat or rolling hill course, to the coast down a hill after a hard climb. The trainer also features a wheel off design and super flywheel, and the iPhone connected bike trainer is further engineered to provide a more ultra-realistic road feel, which is equivalent to the inertia of an actual rider on the road.

Wahoo Fitness Official Website

2014 PGA Merchandise Show: The Xventure Begins

At this week’s 2014 PGA Merchandise Show Bracketron has unveiled its new Xventure Golf line, which includes a wide range of mounts, chargers and accessories that help tech savvy golfers use mobile devices to improve their game. The new products include the TriCaddy XL, a golf tripod that includes a tablet holder and can be positioned to record a full golf swing.

Designed for indoor and outdoor use, the TriCaddy XL provides players with a portable and easy way to record their full golf swing for analysis and review. With its four-section adjustable legs, the tripod provides easy positioning and height adjustment, offering a range of 15 to 35 inches. It features a tablet device holder for effortless, hands-free recording, and the tripod also features a dual standard 1/4″ thread and t-notch adapter for optimal flexibility plus 360 degree rotation for portrait or landscape use.

Bracketron Xventure Official Website

Tweets Keep the Sharks Away

Shark attacks are rather rare, but when they do occur they can be deadly. Now researchers in Australia have developed a system that could use social media to not only warn when a shark attack is imminent but actually monitor the movement of sharks near beaches.

It could be the next best thing to having the sharks sign up on Twitter to announce their presence. Since that would be difficult – as sharks don’t have mobile phones or the thumbs to type out tweets – the researchers have attached transmitters to more than 320 sharks, including great whites. When the sharks get close to the beaches the sensors trigger an alert, which is picked up on a computer.

From this a short message on Surf Life Saving Western Australia’s (SLSWA) Twitter feed is posted giving details on the approximate location of the shark, as well as its size and breed. This might just make it safe to go back into the water.

[Via Sky News: Australia: Sharks Use Twitter To Warn Swimmers]