Having been a loyal follower of the Nike+ system, I was anticipating the introduction of Nike's own GPS watch.
I've followed Nike+ not too long after it was introduced in 2006 and started using the system in 2007 (somewhat of a New Year's Resolution to get in shape). I started with a 2nd generation iPod Nano and the Nike+iPod Sports Kit, which consisted of a sensor that plugs into the bottom of the Nano, and a footpod transmitter that goes into a special pocket in Nike+ model shoes or into a footpod pouch that can be secured to the shoe across the laces.
I loved the feedback and encouragement of the instant feedback of the entire system, from the congratulatory message at end of a personal best workout, to the statistical feedback and trending from the Nikeplus website. In fact, my experience with system was documented in a Wired article back in June 2009. I even invested in a Nike+ wrist remote to control to control the iPod
I loved the system, but wanted something that was less "bulky", not that the iPod on an armband was bulky, but I wanted more of a minimalist experience.
That's when I bought the Nike+ SportBand. It's a simple, water-resistant wristband with a detachable display module that can plug into a USB port for syncing runs to the Nike+ website. It still requires the footpod transmitter but that's all you need. No iPod, but that also means no voice prompts during your run to notify you of intervals (which I use), and the SportBand display didn't have a backlight which is not useful during early morning runs or evening runs.
But because both the iPod Sports Kit and the SportBand both relied on the footpod, the accuracy of the runs have varied by up to 10%. The transmitter and sensor would track 10% more mileage than I had actually run. The big advantage that the SportBand had was that it also allowed integration with the Nike-branded, Polar heart rate monitor.
Nike then released an app that utilized the iPhone GPS chip to track run mileage. That was the close to the Holy Grail for me. Here was a package that had both accuracy, allowed me to listen to music, and still get the encouraging voice prompts. It also allowed me to upload the runs to the Nike+ website without needed to sync the runs via a computer. It also leveraged social media by posting run when I was about to go for a run and allowed Facebook friends to send virtual cheers to my iPhone. The big downside was having to carry the iPhone with me on my runs. While that's a convenience in some respect, it's added bulk and there's no visual feedback that I had gotten used to with the SportBand even though I got back my audio feedback that I had with my iPod Nano. I also had to keep the iPhone in a separate pouch with my fuel belt mainly because I didn't want to use an armband that could allow perspiration to reach the iPhone.
What I really wanted was a GPS watch like the Garmin Forerunner 405. The Forerunner 405 is a stylish GPS watch that looks like a normal watch and much more sleek than the blocky Garmin Forerunner 205. But at over $200 at some retailers, the Garmin was out of my reach and there was no similar feedback system like the Nike+ website.
In early April, Nike made the Nike+ SportWatch GPS available for sale on their website. It was a GPS watch, designed in conjunction with Tom Tom, intended to work with the Nike+ system. The primary distance tracking is performed by GPS with backup tracking provided by the venerable Nike+ footpod sensor in case a GPS signal is not available.
I took the SportWatch out for a 2-mile run for the first time last week. The distance tracking during the run was accurate and the watch provided the basic statistical information, such as time duration, distance, pace, calories burned, and heart rate (only with the Nike+ Polar HRM). The immediate feature I noticed and huge benefit, even though I didn't get a chance to use it during the run, was the backlight. It was a feature that was not available on the SportBand. The backlight is activated via a tap to the watch face display. The display itself is not a touchscreen, as it requires a decent tap for the backlight to activate.
The SportWatch has 2 run modes: distance by "laps", or intervals. The Laps mode will notify via a sound alert that you've reached a specific distance, i.e. every 1, 2, or 3 miles, which would replace my need for audio feedback every mile per my preference. The Interval mode allows you to set run-walk intervals with the watch letting you know when to walk and run. Strangely though, the number of minutes for either interval can only be set as a customization when the watch is plugged into a computer with the Nike+ Connect software installed, which is both Windows and Mac-compatible.
When initiating a run, it needs at minimum the Nike+ footpod transmitter. A run can be initiated without a GPS signal, but not without the footpod. Like most GPS watches, it requires the watch to be used outdoors where a GPS signal can be detected. I found that it took about a full minute before the SportWatch picked up the GPS signal.
The watch plugs into a computer via USB via a USB plug made through the watch band. On one of the ends of the band, the end cap flips down to reveal the USB tip that resembles the same USB plug on the SportBand. To sync your runs with the Nike+ website, you have to plug the watch into your computer with the previously-mentioned Nike+ Connect software installed. The software also allows you to set user preferences such as time settings, weight (for calorie tracking), preferred stats on the watch, setting of intervals, and preferred stat that shows up the largest on the watch's display.
At the end of the run, the SportWatch will let you know how well you did, if you surpassed any personal records, your pace, your total time and total duration.
All in all, it's a very capable device that gives the Garmin Forerunner 405 a run for its money. It doesn't feel as solid as the Forerunner 405, but the SportWatch is actually a tad heavier (at 2.33 ounces) than the Garmin 405 (2.11 ounces). The SportWatch is much sleeker and a tad more stylish than the Garmin (my opinion of course). Yes, the SportWatch does require a footpod as a backup to the GPS, which some see as a bit of lame fallback position, but Garmin does not have a backup if your GPS sensor loses its signal, which all GPS watches suffer from.
The biggest benefit that Nike has going for it within the deep field of GPS running watches is the Nike+ website and it's large community of users and its plethora of challenges to keep things interesting.
