Wireless Wednesday for 5/21/14: With Mitch Evans - Rick's Favorite Sports Gadgets of 2014

 Have a listen to Rick and Mitch

* TOPICS - Rick's top sports gadgets and sports tech items of 2014 so far...

listen to ‘Wireless Wednesday for 5/21/14 on 92.9 The Game Part 1’ on Audioboo

listen to ‘Wireless Wednesday for 5/21/14 on 92.9 The Game Part 2’ on Audioboo

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1.  BlueAnt: PUMP HD Sportbuds

Train, play, live, unleashed – with the ultimate multi-sport headphone. PUMP delivers Energize HD Audio unmatched by wireless rivals in an ultra-rugged design. Let the beat set the pace.

·         Energize HD Audio: thundering bass, smooth mids, crisp treble, & sharp, yet subtle highs, together comprise Energize HD Audio – an audiophile-grade music experience unmatched by wireless rivals
·         Rugged Design: encased in Kevlar shielding used in bullet-proof vests; coated with Teflon that repels liquids on commercial cooking equipment; & the only sportsbuds to earn an IP67 rating; PUMP protects the premium audio components from rain, dust, debris, sweat, & even a quick rinse under the tap at the end of your workout (*not designed for swimming)
·         Best-In-Class Wireless Range: delivers crystal clear audio from up to 100 feet away from any Bluetooth-compatible device, also featuring a built-in mic for handsfree calls
·         Secure Comfort: easy to wear during long periods of intense activity with wrap-around form factor ensuring a secure fit that never slips off & ComfortSeal tips with a soft rubberized texture
·         Battery Life: don’t let the beat die even on the longest of runs; the rechargeable lithium-ion battery provides 8 hours of continuous play time
·         PUMP HD Sportsbuds Video

Available at: Apple Store® (www.Apple.com), Verizon Wireless stores & on www.BlueAntWireless.com
Price: $129.95
Website: www.BlueAntWireless.com

 

2.  Tom Tom Cardio Watch

Comes in both Runner and Multi-Sport variants, offers a lot of flexibility if you dig deep enough, but also manages to put most of its most generally useful features near enough the top of the experience that novices don’t have to futz about to get started. There’s interval training, sure, but it’s also very easy just to start running and have the watch provide both visual and vibration feedback about when you hit your ideal target heart rate.
    8 hrs battery with GPS and heart rate tracking
    63 grams
    Silicon strap
    Waterproof to 5ATM
    Bluetooth Smart
    Optical heart rate monitor from Mio
    MSRP: $269.99
    Product info page

Pros
Watch virtually disappears when you need it to
Accurate heart rate tracking

 

3.  Zepp:  Zepp 3D Multi-Sport Motion Sensor

With new 3D serve analysis for tennis

The new app measures important serve metrics such as racket speed, ball speed potential, spin, backswing time and impact time, which gives players and coaches a new more scientific way to evaluate performance on the court. Additionally, the new sweet spot feature shows you where you make contact with the ball on the racket strings—a key element in gauging your contact quality and consistency.
World’s First sensor that allows users to review and replay their swing in 360º, plus providing detailed analysis and trend reports sent straight to any iOS® or Android device

    3D motion sensor easily attaches to any bat, club, or racket using innovative sport-specific mounts
·         Sensor wirelessly transmits data to your smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth after every swing

    Users can review and replay their swing in 360 degrees
    Baseball: track bat speed, path, timing, angles at impact, trends and more
    Golf: track speed, tempo, club plane, hand path, backswing position, hip rotation and more
    Tennis: track shot type mix (serve, forehand, backhand, smash), power and spin (topspin, slice, flat) and more
    Able to compare swings to pros and friends and share your swing data with others
    Zepp application records critical data and provides analysis, personalized tips, drills and coaching
    Sensor has an 8 hour battery life, weighs 6.3 grams and measures 1.1” x 1.1” x .39”
Available at: Apple and Verizon and Best Buy
Price: $ 149.99
Website:  http://www.zepp.com

 

4.  Misfit Wearable Shine  $99.99

Other fitness trackers like the FitBit and the Jawbone Up get a lot of press, but the Misfit Shine is a stylishly designed gadget that can be worn in a variety of ways. It’s great for daily use, as it is small and unintrusive -- so much so that some reviewers have said it is almost too easy to forget about! It relies on iOS systems to sync stats with a user’s phone, which compensates for the gadget’s minimalistic interface. Oh, and it has a four month battery life, compared to the Fitbit Force’s 7 to 10 day life.
 It uses a three-axis accelerometer to track movement and act as a pedometer. It has Bluetooth for syncing data with iOS devices. As a wrist-worn device, you could compare this to the Fitbit Flex, Jawbone Up, Basis Watch, or Nike FuelBand. In clip-on mode, which the Shine can also be out of the box, it's more like a Fitbit or a Withings Pulse.

It has some advantages over other trackers: it's waterproof to 5 atm for swimming, showering, or other activities; the Withings Pulse and certain Fitbit models aren't. And, yes, it has an "activity tracking" mode that can be set for swimming, cycling, or sleep at the current moment, besides the Shine's baseline walking/running tracking. It can be worn on your wrist or as a clip-on device with included accessories, or even worn as a pendant.

 

5.  TaylorMade SLDR  Mini Driver  $279.99

SLDR Mini Driver: Finally, a 3-wood Designed for the Tee

TaylorMade noticed that TOUR pros and better amateurs hit their 3-wood off the tee a lot more frequently than from the fairway, so we embraced that insight and created a new golf club that incorporates our cutting edge metalwood technology, including the distance-enhancing Speed Pocket, and sized it between a 3-wood and 460cc driver. We call it the SLDR Mini Driver, it’s incredibly accurate and longer off the tee than a 3-wood.
At 260cc, the SLDR Mini Driver’s footprint is larger, and face deeper, than a 160cc 3-wood. That gives you more stability and forgiveness on mis-hits and allows you to tee the ball higher, which makes the it easier to launch off the tee than a 3-wood. The SLDR Mini Driver has a low-forward CG like the rest of TaylorMade’s SLDR metalwoods, and a Speed Pocket too, which promotes more ball speed and less spin to give you more distance when you loft up.


App of the week:
Reverse Dictionary  99 cents

Ever have a word on the tip of your tongue that you just couldn’t remember no matter hard you try? Well of course you have, but now Reverse Dictionary is here to help you out. All you have to do is type a description of the word that you want to use and the app will bring up a bunch of different suggestions for what word you could be looking for. So for instance, if you type in “small business owner,” Reverse Dictionary will give you suggestions such as “entrepreneur” and “proprietor.”