Garmin have entered the growing smartwatch market by unveiling the GPS-enabled Vivoactive, with built-in apps for running, swimming, golf and – crucially – cycling.
The Vivoactive follows the launch of the Apple Watch and Samsung Gear 2 in 2014 and sees Garmin – already the market leader for cycling GPS computers – throw their hat into the smartwatch ring.
The Vivoactive is designed as a day-to-day watch, as opposed to something to just be worn during sport, and has an super-thin design as a result – said to be just 8mm thick and with a claimed weight of 38g.
The cycling app measures time, distance, speed and an estimate of calories burned, while the watch is ANT+ ready and so can also be paired compatible devices, including a heart rate monitor and cadence sensor.The Vivoactive can also be used as a remote for the Garmin Virb on-bike camera, which debuted in the pro peloton last season.
The watch is Bluetooth-enabled so can be paired with a smartphone to automatically upload activities to Garmin Connect, which in turn can be synced with the likes of Strava and Training Peaks, while the high resolution screen can display incoming calls, text messages, e-mails, calendar reminders and social media notifications.
Cycling aside, the Vivoactive’s running app can display pace, time and distance using GPS, while the built-in accelerometer tracks speed and distance when GPS is unavailable. There are also auto lap, auto pause and vibration alerts for heart rate, pace and run/walk intervals. Meanwhile, golfers can download course maps (using the watch to track distance to the green, as well as record the score) and the watch is water resistant to 50m for swimmers, while displaying data such as number of lengths, total and interval distances, pace and calories burned.
There is also a day-to-day activity app which tracks steps, calories burned and distance, with a personalised daily step goal accompanied by a ‘gentle reminder’ when users have been inactive too long.
Besides the Vivoactive’s build-in applications – and perhaps, in the long run, more interestingly – third-party apps can be downloaded from the ‘Connect IQ’ store. Garmin say that apps currently in development include LifeLine Response, which will allow users to alert LifeLine to send their exact GPS location to the nearest ‘first responders’ in the case of an emergency.
The Vivoactive will be available from March 2015 for £199.99, or £229.99 with a heart rate monitor.
