With dozens of existing options in fitness tracking wearables, it remains disappointing that very few of them, if any, can stand up to extended use in the water. Simply put, fitness gadgets haven’t done a good job of servicing the folks who list swimming as their sport or exercise of choice. Swimmo is hoping to fill that gap.
Described as “the ultimate swimmer’s smartwatch,” the fully-waterproof device comes with a plethora of functions designed to aid swimmers in their training. Whether you want to improve your lap times, increase water endurance, or just swim to get in shape, this wearable might very well be the best available gadget to help you achieve it.
Instead of being a mere fitness band, Swimmo comes in a smartwatch form factor, complete with a color OLED display, so you can keep track of all progress directly from your wrist. That means, you can use it independent of a smartphone – a necessity when you spend your actual training time in a pool of electronics-frying water. To do that, the watch also comes with its own set of training apps, such as IntensityCoach (an app that helps you maintain a specific heart rate during a swim), PaceKeeper (which vibrates the watch any time it detects your pace slowing down), and more. And, yes, it also tells the time like a regular digital watch.
It’s equipped with all the sensors needed to monitor heart rate, distance swam (which it can count in laps, yards, or meters), calories burned, speed, and other relevant stats. Of course, it also comes with an accompanying smartphone app (iOS and Android) where you can get advanced features like a swimming log and workout analysis, apart from being able to sync with today’s most popular fitness apps.
A Kickstarter campaign is currently running for Swimmo. Pledges to reserve a unit starts at $169.