Bet you can’t do this with your Apple Watch. A partnership between Speedo and wearable maker Misfit has given birth to the Speedo Shine, a fitness tracker designed specifically for swimmers. The Shine is waterproof up to 50 meters and functions as a lap counter for swimmers.
The Speedo Shine works with Misfit’s Android and iOS apps, as well as Speedo’s Fit app. In addition to swimming, Misfit’s app tracks a variety of activities including walking, running, cycling and sleep, as one would expect with a fitness tracker.
Misfit says the Shine never needs a charge, which is a fancier way of saying that it’s powered by an old-school watch battery. Still, the battery is advertised as lasting six months, which is fairly impressive for a fitness tracker. The Shine is made out of light, strong aluminum and can be worn with a watchband or a magnetic clip that can be attached to your clothes.
I’ve been wearing the Speedo Shine while writing this story and it’s light and small enough to be barely noticeable. It is much lighter than my Timex Weekender, which is extremely light as far as dumb watches are concerned.
The Speedo-branded Shine is mostly the same as regular Misfit Shines, but it’s the only one to offer lap counting and a silver aluminum finish designed to match your MacBook Air. The Speedo Shine will be available Sept. 1 at the Apple Store and on the Speedo and Misfit websites.
Image: Miles Goscha/Mashable
This collaboration stands in sharp contrast to Misfit’s other recent partnership, with Swarovski: the two companies teamed up for fitness trackers designed to be worn straight from the gym to a ritzy cocktail party.
While it’s a little odd to launch a fitness tracker this late in the summer, the Speedo Shine seems to be a solid option for swimmers looking to get into the world of fitness tracking on the cheap. It costs $79.99 and is fairly full featured; only a handful of other fitness trackers offer similar levels of water resistance.
Now I just need to find a pool for testing.