Why Adidas Built a Rather Minimalist Smartwatch

Hot on the heels of Nike’s announcement of the Fuelband SE suite of smartwatch, Adidas has also jumped on the bandwagon with its own wearable tech that is specifically intended for dedicated runners.

Specs and Functions

The as-yet unnamed Adidas smartwatch features a GPS connection for monitoring the users’ physical activities and a pulse rate sensor for tracking an athlete’s performance. The resulting information will be stored in the cloud for Adidas’ miCoach app to analyze your fitness level and target heart rate. The app gives feedback to your performance and training guide for your future regimen, all transmitted through Bluetooth-enabled headphones. Users can also listen to their music library with an onboard flash memory.

The smartwatch also works to concoct personalized exercise programs and to prompt wearers to that routine on the display.

Adidas will roll out the smartwatch on November 1 for $399, which raises questions on the gadget’s relatively higher price than the $250 Nike Fuelband.

Minimalist Smartwatch

Unlike conventional smartwatches that have come out recently – Qualcomm’s Toq, Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, Kreyos’ Meteor, Pebble, as well as other rumored such devices from Google and Apple – the Adidas model is apparently shy of what may constitute a smart technology. It neither packs a handful of applications nor supports tethering to a smartphone for expanded usage. That was precisely what the company intended to accomplish as it geared the smartwatch up to a limited market. In collaboration with Fjord, the sports apparel giant developed the technology with the goal not to clash with the other tech titans but to cater to the needs only of athletic runners. In so doing, Adidas aims for the device to be an integral part of an athlete’s daily life.

The idea behind it is simple. Adidas doesn’t want extra gadgets to get on the nerves of users while doing physical fitness activities or running. Samsung Galaxy Gear, for example, is tethered to smartphones or tablets via Bluetooth for users to get notifications of incoming calls, messages, emails and social media alerts while on the go. The role of smartwatch, however, ends when you pick up your mobile device and shift focus on it.

Paul Gaudio, Adidas vice president of interactive, quips conclusively:

“Runners get to a point where they don’t want to be bothered to carry a phone. One of the reasons people run is to de-stress and get away. Leaving extra capabilities out was deliberate and intentional.”