Category: Swimming

CES 2012: DryBUDS SPORT Waterproof Headphones and Mic Let You Gab in Water

Cell phones and H2O should normally never mix, but for those who cannot live without their phones even when in or near water, the DryBUDS SPORT headphones with built-in waterproof microphone is the accessory for you.

Shown this week at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, the DryBUDS SPORT is completely waterproof, according to its manufacturer, Dry Corp. That means you can bring it into the pool or shower to listen to your tunes. Paired with your phone using Dry Corp’s DryCASE vacuum-sealed waterproof case, you can utilize the microphone to make/receive calls while you soap up your bod or perform your backstrokes. The ability to access your phone through the headphones is also great for times when you can’t physically reach for the phone, like when you’re busy canoeing down a river, for example.

DryCASE Official Website

Like a Frog to Water

There is an old saying that water and oil don’t mix, and now De Soto is looking to become the first triathlon company to offer an alternative to petroleum-based wetsuits. The new T1 Wetsuits could also make it easy to be green!

“We have seamlessly replaced one rubber with another that is better,” says company founder, Emilio De Soto. “It is more buoyant, it helps you swim faster, and it lasts longer.  If nothing else were to change, we are selling a better-performing product with less detriment to the environment, which is always our goal.”

The suits are made of GreenGoma rubber that reportedly offers better stretch, buoyancy, durability and insulation. It is made of a close-cell injected construction that also makes it 98.9 percent water impermeable, but it also is lighter and dries out faster than petroleum-based wetsuits. So maybe it will let wearers take to the water… like a frog!

De Soto Sport Triathlon Company Official Website
[Via Gizmag: De Soto uses limestone for its T1 Wetsuits]

CES Preview: Uwater K7 Delivers Big Sound in Small Package

The Uwater K7 won’t shrink in water and that’s a good thing, because it is about as small as could be already. The world’s smallest 100 percent waterproof FM radio/receiver will be showcased at next month’s Consumer Electronics Show, and is provides music, news, sports and talk radio to swimmers.

The device has a built-in Li-Ion rechargeable battery, which juices up from a USB port, and it can run for eight hours on a single charge.

It features a one-inch LCD screen, 19 station preset, stereo sound, indoor/outdoor reception (even under water) and “twist & lock” earphones are included. The silicon ear tips even come in two sizes, and at just an ounce this one won’t hold you back in the water.

Fitness Tech USA Official Website

New Speedo Suit for Michael Phelps

This week Michael Phelps unveiled the Fastskin3,the new high-tech swimsuit that the Olympic champion plans to wear in next year’s games in London. While the Speedo LZR Racer, which he previously used and were used in all but two of the 25 broken record events at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, the new suits are reportedly already looking to be record breakers.

The full body high-tech suits were banned in 2009 following the World Aquatics Championships, which saw 43 more records broken, so these new designs cover less of the body, but do incorporate a cap, goggles and suit. Speedo suggests that swimmers using the suit can gain an extra 11 percent in oxygen economy, reduce skin friction drag by 2.7 percent and full body drag force by 5.7 percent from this new system, resulting in stronger performances. Video and more images after the jump

Easy Shot Makes Underwater Video Easy

There seems to be no shortage of portable video cameras that can take a dive, but the Easy Shot Clip HD Diving Kit is one more to consider. Developed by Concord Keystone, this small HD digital camera allows divers and swimmers to capture 720 HD video and sound from depths up to 100 feet. It comes with its own waterproof housing that is clipped to a 360-degree rotating mounting bracket, so it can be attached to diving or swimming masks or goggles. Video after the jump

SwiMP3 Player

FINIS isn’t close to being finished with its innovation in waterproof digital music player. The company, which is a developer and provider of select training equipment for the U.S. Olympic Swim Team, announces the release of its SwiMP3 2G, an upgraded version of its award-winning underwater MP3 player.

The SwiMP3 2G brings music to the pool and beach, and is therefore perfect for swimmers and triathletes looking to eliminate the watery silence of swimming lap after lap. The player offers twice as much music as the original version for a total of 30 hours or approximately 500 songs, and features a unique and patented bone conduction technology by transmitting high-fidelity sound underneath the water. Continue reading SwiMP3 Player

Medical ID Bracelet Goes High Tech

httpv://youtu.be/vqAzSTs6jG8

Medical ID bracelets are an old brand of jewelry. For years bracelets existed for seniors or someone with a condition, to assist  first responders when they arrive on the scene of an emergency and find the victim unconscious. In recent years we’ve seen a push for ID bracelets designed for athletes – specifically designed for those people whose activity or training program often takes them hours and miles away from home. Now there is a new ID bracelet that not only provides your invaluable medical information for first responders, but also allows you to travel cash-free. Nathan Performance Gear and VITAband have teamed up in a long-term partnership to bring the Nathan VITAband to the masses. The Nathan VITAband is the first ID bracelet that combines the information needed by first responders and a debit card all electronically on your wrist.

Continue reading Medical ID Bracelet Goes High Tech

Dive in With Michael Phelps: Push the Limit

Even if the pool is closed for the season you can still dive in for a swim, at least in the living room. Michael Phelps: Push the Limit, which was developed by developed by Blitz Games and published by 505 Games, has arrived this week for Kinect on the Xbox 360. The game makes a big splash as it offers players the chance to compete against each other as well as against one of the most decorated athletes of all time, Michael Phelps. Fans play in quick matches in single player or local/online multiplayer against friends or immerse themselves in the challenging and fun Career Mode where they swim their way to the podium through some of the most breathtaking locations across the world, finally facing Michael himself in the final. Continue reading Dive in With Michael Phelps: Push the Limit

New Garmin Forerunner Goes for a Swim; Ready for Kona

Sports and GPS go hand-in-hand. That is unless you’re swimming or going off to remote areas where tracking often poses a challenge. Innovations in GPS technology now make it possible to track your workouts, and races, when swimming. Garmin is among the sport watch manufacturers to leverage this new technology.

The company’s new Forerunner 910XT is a multisport watch, an all-in-one GPS-enabled device that provides detailed swim metrics and tracks distance, speed/pace, elevation and heart rate for running and cycling. The 910XT has an on-board barometric altimeter for improved elevation data.

A smooth, low profile allows for athletes to slide tight-fitting wetsuits over the watch. This makes it possible for use with water sports. It also facilitates quick outfit changes necessary for triathletes competing in races where a wetsuit or other protective and warmth gear is necessary.

(Video after the jump)

Continue reading New Garmin Forerunner Goes for a Swim; Ready for Kona

Not so Trashy Swimsuits

We live in a disposable society, no doubt about it. Last year’s fashions end up piling up until they’re donated or thrown away. But what if you could send your swimsuit to the composite pile?

That’s the idea behind designer Linda Loudermilk’s new design, which made its debut at the Haute Natured sustainable-swimwear show during Fashion Week in Miami recently. While the show featured swim attire from several designers, reportedly being made from recycled plastic bottles, wood pulp and even parachutes (how 1980s sounding), Loudermilk’s design is made from plant starch, so it will biodegrade.

The suits reportedly can break down in about 180 days when buried underground, so it should be fine for a season in the sun and pool. It gives a whole new meaning to trashy swimsuit.

[Via Cnet: Compostable swimsuits make a splash in Miami]

Speedo Counts Laps With AquaCoach

Cyclists rely on cycling computers to track speed, distance and even cadence, while heart rate monitors can track calories and workout intensity. Now Speedo and Pool-Mate swimming computer Swimovate are partnering to develop the AquaCoarch watch, which can provide swimmers automatically detect not only laps, but also the strokes used, along with distance, speed and number of strokes, as well as calories burned during a workout.

This watch is water-resistant (but of course) to 100 meters or 328 feet, and can work in any pool over 15 meters (49 feet) long. It can remember up to 50 swim sessions too, so users can compare their latest workouts. The key to this device is that it features an accelerometer along with custom algorithms that can count individual strokes while keeping track of laps by detecting the pauses that occur when swims do the flip thing to change direction.

(Video after the jump) Continue reading Speedo Counts Laps With AquaCoach

Ambitious Floating Pool Concept Will Allow New Yorkers to Swim in River, Fuhgeddaboudit!

+Pool floating pool concept. (+Pool)

New Yorkers know that swimming in the local waters is a quick way to catch some nasties. But if a project called the +Pool (pronounced “plus pool”) gets built according to plan, the city’s inhabitants could soon find themselves swimming in one of the rivers as soon as 2012.

Of course, you won’t actually dive straight into the river itself. The idea for +Pool is to create a public pool that floats on the river, while the pool’s water will be water from the river that has been filtered through the walls. (A similar floating pool exists in Berlin on the Spree River, but doesn’t have an ambitious filtration concept.) The tri-layer filtration walls removes things such as wildlife, debris, algae, bacteria, and viruses. Four sections comprise a cross-mark design that allows the 9,000-square-foot pool to be divided for, say, a kid’s pool and a lap pool; two modules can also be used as an Olympic-length pool.

Architect Dong-Ping Wong and designers Jeffrey Franklin and Archie Lee Coates IV came up with the idea in June 2010 during a hot summer, who lamented that New Yorkers can’t enjoy a swim despite being surrounded by water. The +Pool concept has already generated lots of interest from various parties, including engineering firm Arup. The designers have spent the past months on research and, working with Arup, studied the feasibility of the filtration system, which Arup has deemed possible.

The idea now needs to enter actual testing of the filtration system by building a filtration wall. The designers are using Kickstarter to help fund the testing phase. If they can raise $500,000, they can build a full-scale mock-up of the wall, but are currently hoping to raise $25,000 to begin the testing process (creating the primary-but-crucial filtration layer). As of this writing, the project has raised more than $35,000 through Kickstarter with eight more days to go, so there’s still time to invest. Eventually the team hopes to pass their tests, win approval from the city, and build it by 2012.

+POOL

+POOL KICKSTARTER PAGE