Apple Inc. unveiled new fitness capabilities for Apple Watch this week that include personalized coaching, motion- and heart-rate algorithms for High Intensity Interval Training and a developer kit that will allow users to connect their watches to an assortment of cardio equipment.
At Apple’s annual Worldwide Developer Conference on Monday, the company introduced the latest software update for Apple Watch, watchOS 4, with features that include an enhanced Workout app and GymKit, a platform that will enable users to sync their watches to gym equipment such as treadmills, ellipticals, stair steppers and indoor bikes.
The workout machines from global manufacturers Life Fitness and Technogym, which together represent roughly 80 percent of the machines in gyms today, will begin sending information about calories, distance, speed, floors climbed, incline and pace to Apple Watches starting this fall.
In exchange, the watch will send real-time heart-rate data to the machines, helping users to track their cardio workouts at the gym with better accuracy. The two-way data exchange will also cause the watch to automatically stop when users hit pause on their machines.
Swim. Bike. Run. In a row on @apple watch #WWDC2017
— Evan Spielberg (@EvanSpielberg) June 5, 2017
In Apple’s updated Workout app, algorithms that measure motion and heart rate will help athletes more accurately track High Intensity Interval Training workouts, such as complex running and weightlifting regimens that include a mix of workouts in a single session.
The app will include auto-sets for pool swim workouts as well, which will automatically sense when a swimmer takes a brief rest at the edge of the pool and mark each set of swim separately with information about distance for each stroke type and pace for each set. Last year, Apple introduced a waterproof version of Apple Watch that syncs with an app called MySwimPro.
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The new sensors and algorithms will help athletes better keep track of a wide-range of metrics across several types of workouts simultaneously, from the pool to the bike to road — something that might benefit a triathlete, according to Apple.
Meanwhile, new fitness capabilities will live in the iOS Activity app. Features will include intelligent coaching, a personalized notification every morning if users are close to earning a fitness “achievement” in the app, and suggestions on what they can do to match recent activity levels.
Users will receive tips on how to reach their goals near the end of the day if they’re falling behind, as well as individualized monthly challenges.
The enhanced features for Apple Watch come one week after Stanford University researchers published a report claiming that calorie counts on fitness bands, including smartwatches, tend to be very inaccurate, though Apple had that highest overall rating when accounting both calories and heart-rate accuracy.
Apple Watch Series 2 will with a sport band will start at $369. The original Apple Watch Series 1 will cost $269. The Apple Watch Nike+ specialized model also starts at $369.