Garmin are one of the market leaders in both wearable fitness trackers and high end sports tracking devices such as bike and hiking GPS. Today at IFA they have announced 3 new fitness devices: The Vivosport, Vivomove HR and Vivoactive 3.
Vivosport
The Vivosport looks like your run of the mill wrist based activity tracker. It has a couple of major advantages though – Unlike many of their competitors it has an inbuilt GPS as well as heart rate monitor to ensure that not only your activities are tracked but also your efforts as part of that activity. Garmin also claim that the Vivosport has a 7 day battery life as a smartwatch and 8 hours of battery while operating as a GPS device which is quite impressive for such a small device.
An interesting addition to the Vivosport is the use of your heart rate through the day to track your stress levels. Garmin says
It also tracks your HRV (heart rate variability), which is used to calculate and display your stress level. The goal is to make you aware when physical or emotional sources cause your stress level to rise so you can find a way to relieve the pressure.
Coming in at US$199 its certainly not the cheapest fitness tracker on the market, but you get what you pay for in terms of quality when you buy Garmin.
Vivomove HR
Bridging the gap between smartwatch and activity tracker is the Vivomove HR. Offering users a nicely designed and well presented device that won’t look out of place at a formal occasion or in a board room, without losing the functions of a smartwatch or for the data geeks out there, your step counts and fitness data.
Never miss a text or notification, thanks to smart notifications² that appear on your digital display. Your fitness and wellness tracking data will be automatically uploaded to the free Garmin Connect™ online community.
As an additional bonus to those looking for discretion, the Vivomove HR will not display your notifications for the whole world to see as a default but rather only when the user turns their wrist indicating that they are looking at the device.
Depending on the option you choose, the cost will range between US$199 or US$299 which for what you’re getting feels about right compared to some of the other options on the market.
Vivoactive 3
Moving slight away from the formal look of the Vivomove HR, the Vivoactive 3 has a much more casual feel about its presentation but really amps up the functionality for active users with customisation, indoor and outdoor work out modes and Garmin Pay on the features list.
vívoactive 3 is our first wearable to feature Garmin Pay, which lets you pay for purchases with your watch. Use it just about anywhere you can tap your card to pay1. So, if you left your wallet in your locker or just forgot it, that post-run morning caffè latte can still be yours. Just tap and go.
It shouldn’t be a surprise that with the increase in functionality and look. you’re also looking at a higher price for the Vivoactive 3, which will set you back US299.99 – US$329.99
All three of these devices will bluetooth connect to your mobile device to sync data with the Garmin Connect app. You can track your daily activity, fitness activities and even sleep.
It’s some really solid progress on the previous generation of devices and they’re sure to sell well.
What features do you look for in your smartwatch or fitness tracker?
Definitely curious as Vivoactive HR user. wonder how/if Garmin Pay will work in Australia. Same with Fitbit Pay.
Shame there’s still no onboard storage for audio.