Swim trackers that won’t break the bank
As modern technology continues to advance at an astonishing rate, we are becoming spoilt for choice when it comes to gadgets and gizmos. Activity trackers have become very popular with health and fitness enthusiasts and swimmers are no exception. Unfortunately many of these devices don’t come cheap.
Essential reading: Best fitness trackers and health gadgets
The good news is that you can source fantastic activity trackers while not spending a bundle – you just need to know where to look. If you are after something that tracks the basics in the water, one of these devices might do the trick.
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Fitbit Flex 2 | Polar Loop | Moov Now | Speedo Shine | Nokia Go
Fitbit Flex 2
The Flex 2 is the company’s slimmest tracker yet and for the first time for a Fitbit device is water resistant.
The device is 30% smaller than the original model and features a removable core unit and interchangeable slim, classic fitness bands in seven colors. A simple LED display uses color-coded lights to show progress toward your daily goal, and keeps you connected with call and text notifications.
More importantly, this is Fitbit’s first swim-proof wristband. The device is water resistant up to 50 meters, whether you’re in the shower, pool or ocean, and it automatically tracks your pool swims including laps, duration and calories burned in the Fitbit app.
Polar Loop
Polar Loop’s is another inexpensive option. The device features a screen composed of 85 individually placed LED lights, managing to deliver just the right amount of easy to read stats and updates.
Loop works 24 hours a day, 7 days per week, constantly monitoring any activity you do, and that also includes sleep. It tracks steps taken and calories burnt and even tells you how much time you have spent sitting and resting.
You will not get any advanced swimming metrics, but the device does track your calories burned, and if you want to monitor your heart rate, the Polar H7 chest strap is also water-resistant.
The device is a simple activity tracker, that does what it was designed to do rather well. So as long as you’re up and moving, the activity tracker counts it all.
Moov Now
Moov Now is described as a wearable audio coach, and at first glance, it sports a very novel look. Basically, if you imagine a plain black watch with small holes, that is what you get – yet the look actually works very well.
This tracker monitors progress, it talks you through your workouts in real-time, its water resistant and its battery gives it enough juice for more than 6 months.
Moov contains a 9-axis motion sensing system so you can track your movements in 3d. You can wear it on your ankle or your wrist, and when you do sweat, due to the unique design, the device is breathable, making life much more comfortable.
In the pool, the Moov Now can detect your lap times, number of laps, pace, stroke rate/length, flip/turn time, swim duration, fastest 100 meters/yards, interval times, and calories burnt. It automatically recognizes your strokes: breaststroke, freestyle, backstroke and butterfly.
Speedo Shine
Misfit’s Speedo Shine wearable allows you to set your own goals, it has a 6 month battery life, it monitors steps, distance and calories and is water resistant up to 50 metres.
The device is worn on the wrist and capable of tracking both swim distance and lap count, regardless of swim stroke. It syncs with the Misfit app for iOS and Android and displays laps and swim distance, along with calories burned and points earned.
You can keep tabs on multiple different sports, and when you are not training hard, the device functions as a watch. With 12 small LEDs, Speedo Shine certainly catches the eye.
Nokia Go
This is a beautiful little wearable which fits squarly into the budget fitness tracker category. The circular gizmo was clearly designed to assist just about everyone to embrace activity tracking.
Nokia Go features an E-Ink screen that shows activity, functions as a watch on demand and is legible in bright sunlight. The E-Ink screen is an original concept which has the benefit of not draining the battery even though its on all the time.
There is automatic 24/7 activity tracking for walking, running, swimming and sleeping, as well as automatic recognition of a variety of daily activities. At night, Go can distinguish between light and deep sleep cycles to give you a better understanding of your sleep patterns.
All in all, this is a super attractive budget tracker designed so that in only requires your passive, not active, attention. Clip it on and forget about it.
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