EQUIPMENT


Garmin Gets Its Sports Groove On: The Forerunner Line

Posted by Jonathan in EQUIPMENT on 04-19-10    No Comments


Looks like the iPhone is having a positive effect on sports watches: Long-time GPS maker Garmin, feeling the pain of smart phones getting all navigational, is cranking off some sport watches.

And they actually don’t suck.

Earlier this month, Olathe, Kansas-based  Garmin International (now that’s a small town where getting lost is just not an excuse)  came to market with the Forerunner 110. A sport watch in a condom sort of thang which at first blush, could not be any more throwaway for GPS. The wrist-mounted unit comes with a positioning chip built in, some decent access and data technology branded as Garmin Connect, and some features like heart monitors and such. But with Suunto, Seiko and now Nike in the game, I personally was asleep before I finished the press release.

But …

The clipping sat on the desk and I finally got around to reporting on this thing and sure enough, Garmin is becoming a GPS-enabled training device sleeper. Besides being not bad looking, its line of wrist-mounted computers has  some nice add-ons. Most important is the claimed 8 hours of battery life! EIGHT! Being the uber-nerd I am, I have been messing with GPS-enabled wrist computers for about a decade, and I can tell you as Dick Tracy as they all seem, almost all GPS watches share one sorry little secret: crap battery life. The idea that I could actually get a full day out of this sucker, well that’s a game changer.

What is even more interesting is Nike, Suunto and Seiko are, for sure, feeling this pressure. And you can expect them to fight back with slick nav watches of their own. So this summer, I plan to let my geek flag fly and start wearing more wrist-mounted nav.

It’s good to be a geek.




iOmega and MMA, A Match Made in Heaven

Posted by Dan in EQUIPMENT on 04-15-10    No Comments


king_moWhen I think of MMA training, I think of hours  on the heavy bag or shooting double leg takedowns until your knees bleed. But apparently my way of training is old school.  Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, the MMA fighter preparing for the STRIKEFORCE World Light Heavyweight title bout this Saturday night is using Iomega storage solutions to train for his big bout.  King Mo watches recorded training sessions with the Iomega ScreenPlay Director HD Media Player, an HD media player that lets you take clips from your home network and watch them on the TV. He is also using the new Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station for network storage.

“King Mo is an up-and-coming MAA star with a real hunger to capture the crown that would put him among the world’s best fighters. Protecting King Mo’s data from everything from a low punch to an unexpected drop, as well as allowing him to serve up digital content on his big screen TV and the rest of his personal network, is another great example of how people are utilizing easy-to-use Iomega products in their digital life,” said Jonathan Huberman, President of Iomega and the Consumer and Small Business Products Division of EMC.

I guess we will see on Saturday night if he should have spent more time in the gym instead of in front of the TV.




The Underwear Wars Gets On Its Lounge Act

Posted by Jonathan in EQUIPMENT on 04-15-10    No Comments


Nothing like a bunch of grown men and women battling over your underwear to make life interesting. But that is, in fact, what’s goin’ on. Baltimore-Based Under Amour makes a cool $850 mil a year selling $150 underwear, sports clothes and other athletic chatchkas. The company has proved to be recession-proof, with sales and stock prices climbing thoughout the recent dark times. And in many ways, UA is the wonder boy of the sports marketing world, coming out of nowhere to reinvent base-layer athletic clothing. This cash machine has spawned literally dozens of competitors. I have a list of 88 different underwear companies, if anybody wants it.

And it looks like not working out at all is the company’s next move: Meet the Muscle Recharge Energy Suit. Basically a $130 nylon compression garment that the company claims supports muscles and re-energizes your body after you work out. The company went as far as to make it ultraviolet light resistant, so you can wear it outside to protect your skin.

This has, for sure, raised my eyebrows as to whether it will work, but I’ll reserve judgment on this performance lounge wear until we test one.

But for now, life is this simple: Bust your butt. Put this on. Repeat.




The Masters in 3D Catches Media Fairway

Posted by Jonathan in ALL, EQUIPMENT on 04-09-10    No Comments


Well, look who is getting their 3D game on: The supposed techno-laggards, golf.

While no question, Tiger and his struggles is the dominant story coming out of this year’s Masters, it looks like interest in Comcast’s 3D broadcast of the tourney is getting some real traction. Google has built one of their curated news pages about the search term. And close on to 150 outlets, including some heavies, have picked up the story.

How golf treats emerging technologies, believe it or not, is actually important for new tools in sports. Since many cutting edge  things like online video to mobile sports apps first broke at The Masters. Just try to pretend that this video feed really wont look like much. Since it is using a basic 3D  technology.

But still, the fact that The Masters is embracing the notion of 3D, believe it or not, is a big, positive step.

You go, Old White Guys!




The Wooden Industrial Complex Comes To Softball bats

Posted by Jonathan in EQUIPMENT on 04-07-10    No Comments


With all due respect to our high tech composite cousins, if you really want to make the sporting scene this spring on the baseball diamond, it’s best to stay biodegradable.  I like what I am seeing in wooden softball bats.

Wooden bats offer unmatchable customization in terms of handle size, head diameter, and design. Plus they give your local softball game that old-world baseball flair. And what you give up in distance, you more than make up in control: Nothing better than forcing that lame third baseman to really make that long throw to first. And there is no beating the price:   Even a top of the line custom bat costs about a third of a composite job.

Here are the models worth a look.

  • Viperbats VBB Softball bat in Bamboo.  ($55) No, you will not be suddenly turned into an extra for Apocalypse Now by going bamboo. What will happen is you will get a cheap, durable, super stiff bat that can be optimized for exactly your grip, hitting style and colors. Toss on your  name, a no-break guarantee ($20), and a cupped out head ($5). For a total of $75, you have one hell of a bat.
  • Superior Bat Company SB56. $69 buys a conventional wooden bat also with nice color and customization features.
  • The Xbat SB41 ($90) Xbat goes as far as making a men’s and women’s softball bat. And they also do a heck of a job in colors and overall design.

Don’t even try to pretend you don’t want to come to bat with 2 out bottom of the 6th and the first round that night on the line. These bats are your surest path the victory.