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Workout Watchdogs

BW Online Bureau Nov 08, 2014

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><root available-locales="en_US," default-locale="en_US"><static-content language-id="en_US"><![CDATA[Years ago, a fitness gadget would have meant a clunky pedometer sitting heavy in your pocket, measuring how many steps you took. Not any more, as fitness devices today blend in discreetly into your lifestyle, while packing in far more sophisticated internal hardware. So whether you want to track how many calories you're burning, or simply increase daily activity levels, these state-of-the-art gizmos will help you reach your goal. Now, if only one of these could knock all that Fitbit Ultra($99.95, fitbit.com): Small and highly portable, the Fitbit Ultra clips onto your shirt or jeans pocket and stays there all day, tracking calories burned, steps taken and distance travelled. And when you retire for the night, it records when you went to bed, how long it took for you to fall asleep, and how well you slept. For $99, you not only get a device packed with both an accelerometer and an altimeter, but also access to a website where you can add and track more data such as your weight goals, etc. Motorola MOTOACTV ($249.99, motoactv.com): If you're more serious about your fitness (and especially if you're a runner), the MOTOACTV from Motorola may be the one device you need. Part GPS-tracker, part body tracking device and part MP3 player, you wear the MOTOACTV like a watch. It cleverly measures and correlates and displays data from your workouts, such as the map of your route and your pace during each song on your playlist. And the coolest part – since it keeps track of what songs make you work out the hardest, it lets you build your own high-performance playlist. Plus, if you have a Motorola Android smartphone, you can download a free app to receive calls and texts during your workout directly on your MOTOACTV device. About as close as you can get to a personal-trainer-in-a-gadget! Nike+ FuelBand ($149, nike.com/fuelband): Very retro-chic and rather understated in its design, the Nike+ FuelBand stays strapped onto your wrist like a sporty wristband (with a snazzy LED dot matrix clock, no less) and collects data on how active you are in the day, such as how many calories you burned while walking, climbing or pretty much any activity other than swimming. Bear in mind, you will need a Nike+ compatible device such as an iPhone or an iPod touch to use the free iOS app/website and view your fitness efforts. Adidas Micoach Speed Cell ($69.99, micoach.com): Don't have a Nike+ compatible shoe and device? The Adidas micoach Speed Cell fits not only into compatible Adidas trainers but also onto any pair of standard running shoes. When activated, the device records running speed, distance and pace continuously for upto 7 hours, and you can transfer the data to your PC/Mac/smartphone/tablet using the supplied dongle, to pit your personal bests against your friends and family. Timex Health Touch (Rs. 3,995, timexindia.com): Place a finger on the bezel ring of your Timex Health Touch watch, and the watch detects your heart rate, handy for long distance running or cycling. It also tries to approximate calorie burning as well, but it isn't very accurate since it cannot factor in inclines. Pity also that the watch doesn't record any statistics whatsoever. <table style="width: 600px;" align="center" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="text-align: center;">Drivers Of Change</td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="/businessworld/system/files/images/SamsungSeries-mdm.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;" height="167" width="200">Many folks fear losing the practically-antiquated CD/DVD drive when they're considering an ultrabook, and it's with these folks in mind that Samsung squeezed in a DVD drive into an ultrabook that's still only 0.8-inches thick. Outfitted with a 14-inch screen, the Series 5 ultrabook packs in a roomy hard drive instead of the low capacity solid state drives you normally get to see in ultrabooks. Using the Series 5 is a mixed bag. While the 1366 x 768 pixel display is a step down from other ultrabooks, the screen is super bright and great to use for almost any scenario. With the exception of the hard disk, the internals are the same as most ultrabooks around, and the inclusion of 16 gigabytes of express cache does its bit to accelerate the start-up process, reduce resume times and launch apps quickly. The keyboard and trackpad are comfortable to use as well. Net , the 14-inch screen and optical drive will appeal to folks who find their exclusion limiting, although I can't help but feel those numbers are dwindling, and it's nothing a cheap portable USB DVD drive (coupled with a faster ultrabook) can't fix.   Quick Specs: 14-inch screen, 6GB RAM/ 1TB HDD with 16GB Express Cache, AMD Radeon 1GB Graphic Card and Super Multi DVD-RW Optical Drive Rating: 7/10 Price: Rs 54,390 URL: http://bit.ly/LMNpX2</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> technocool at kanwar dot net twitter@2shar