| GPS devices growing more popular with runners, hikers
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — After a race through 15 miles of rock-laden, hilly trails in Wyandotte County Lake Park, Byron Rieper went online to discuss the competition with other runners.Many already were sharing their experiences online. Some blamed heat and humidity for their slow times, others recalled unforgiving hills. Rieper, a seasoned marathoner and cyclist who lives in Overland Park, used his watch to offer them a detailed look at the course.Millions of athletes are using watches like Rieper's Garmin Forerunner 305, which maps his path and records his distance, speed, pace and heart rate. Other devices that use the Global Positioning System are geared at athletes competing in long-distance events, including cyclists, triathletes and hikers.The popularity of these devices has spiked as more people discover the Web sites where all this information is being uploaded and compared, including SportsTrack, Garmin Ltd.'s MotionBased.com and Nike Inc.'s Nikeplus.com.Many companies, including Nike and Garmin, have organized running groups people can join to test the gadgets.“I just think all these free Web sites where people can upload their data has really contributed to their popularity and people are just more aware of GPS either on cars or on phones,'' said cyclist Jeff Englert, 48, of Shawnee, Kan., who has switched from a handheld GPS to his Garmin watch to compare elevation climbs during his training.Englert, who has ridden for 25 years, said he logs on the MotionBased Web site to find the best local routes when he travels.Other fitness monitoring systems include Nike and Apple Inc.'s Sports Kit, which enable iPod Nanos to measure distance without GPS, and Timex Corp.'s Bodylink system, made in partnership with Garmin, which uses a GPS transceiver to transmit data wirelessly.Timex plans to come out with a new series of GPS watches to compete with Garmin, said Heberto Calves, the company's vice president of marketing.“The trend of fitness measurement as a whole is growing,'' Calves said.
Sweet Swap helps troops, children
A Saginaw Township dentist is giving anyone interested the chance to swap their post-Halloween sugar rush for cash. Under ''Sweet Swap,'' Dr. Paul W. Allen will buy excess candy for $1 a pound from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday at his office, 6300 State, Suite A. Allen plans to send the collected candy to troops in Iraq. ''We had heard about programs like this being done around the country,'' dental hygienist LeAnne Iamurri said. ''We wanted to bring it to Saginaw.'' Those who trade in candy will receive a free T-shirt, and Sweet Swap participants will enter their names in a sweepstakes to win one of two iPod Nano MP3 players at the end of the evening. And the event isn't just for Allen's dental patients. ''We want to give everyone the chance to keep the candy they want and come trade in the rest,'' Iamurri said.
Briefly: Magazines on iPhone; SpaceNavigator
In brief: iPhone versions of popular magazines appear online, the SpaceNavigator controller gains Leopard support, and Fastmac iPod repairs extend to cover Classics and 3G Nanos. Zinio, a company specializing in online publishing, is now offering free online editions of popular magazines for users of the iPhone or the iPod touch. Titles include the likes of American Photo, Car & Driver, NME, Popular Mechanics and Playboy. Site visitors select a magazine by scrolling through thumbnails, and then tap on links in a table of contents to jump to pages. Alternately, users can browse all the pages at once and zoom in to the ones they want to read. Each page is a replica of the print copy. SpaceNavigator controller gains Leopard support 3Dconnexion, builders of the SpaceNavigator 3D mouse, have announced that the device is now compatible with Mac OS X Leopard.
iPod Inside: Standard features of Apple MP3 players
Munich - Mini, nano, or classic: no matter what the flavour, iPods are bestsellers. Many love the design Apple's portable music players while others swear by the simple controls. The database system, which prevents any software but iTunes from stocking the player, is not to everyone's taste, however. Adventurous types can try their luck with alternative software. They allow for individualization of the player and the installation of additional applications. iPod-Linux is free software that provides users with more than just another way to fill up the database: for friends of mobile gaming, for example, there is a Gameboy emulator called iBoy. The standard user interface for Linux is available in a palmtop format called podzilla. Users can then install things like music players, pocket calculators, calendar, file browser, picture viewer, painting, recording, text and video programs, as well as numerous games.
iPod News: Kena Kai Announces Cord Management Cases
Kena Kai, a unique designer of lifestyle gear,will be offering 'cord management cases' for the iPod 30GB series (60 & 80 GB series to follow) and for the iPod Nano style. These iPod cases are available in fun colors of embossed croc and ostrich material.All the cases will have built-in/integrated 'cord management' to make the cases that more convenient and practical. No longer is there a large tangle of headphone cords in the bag or purse. No more knots to untangle. The built-in cord management also allows the user to 'adjust' the length of cord that they want free.Kena Kai will donate 100% of the purchase price of the PINK iPod case to breast cancer research. This means the ENTIRE purchase amount is passed along - not merely some portion. We are doing this to make a statement to how committed we are - 100% committed!Most full-size iPod cases are priced at $29.99, while the nano cases generally cost $24.99.
|
