If you have a swimmer, biker, runner or walker in your family, then you might be struggling to familiarize yourself with the slew of exercise equipment on the market today, as you search for the perfect Christmas gift. Save some time and a lot of needless stress by reviewing the high-tech fitness gadgets listed below. Both items come highly recommended by experts (and mere mortals) who use them on a daily basis:
Garmin Forerunner 405
Given its price this is a fitness item that you might want to reserve for a truly beloved family member. For $300 your resident fitness guru will get a high-tech oversized GPS watch/heart rate monitor, which tracks how far and fast he or she goes.
According to the manufacturer, the device wirelessly sends workout data to a PC if you plug an included USB stick into the computer. The free software can be downloaded from Garmin’s website. The software organizes workouts by date, displays routes on a map and draws charts for heart rate and speed over time.
The nifty gadget can be used for all land activities, including walking, biking and gym workouts (as a heart rate monitor). It also features advanced settings such as custom workouts with heart rate or pace goals.
Finis SwiMP3
If you have a budding Michael Phelps in your family, then this $140 gadget makes the ideal holiday gift.
The waterproof digital music player is made of two large plastic headpieces connected by a cable. The headpieces rest against your face and are secured with clips to goggle straps. Once the device is attached the wearer has access to tunes in the pool.
The player comes with a 256-megabyte hard drive (enough room to accommodate about 60 songs) and a built-in USB plug. The SwiMP3 isn’t sleek or attractive, but it does allow you to move in time to your favorite band underwater without disturbing other swimmers, which is a welcome trade-off for its looks.
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