TomTom has been slowly transitioning to the wearable market because the standalone navigation business is all but dead. As part of this transition, the company introduced the Spark GPS Fitness Watch today at IFA, a development that will excite fitness enthusiasts.
A music player
The TomTom Spark includes 3GB of internal storage, which should be able to hold about 500 songs. This means that you can leave your phone at home when you go our for a jog and still be able to crank up the tunes. You can even utilize playlists from iTunes or Windows Music Player. Unfortunately the watch doesn’t support a microphone jack so you will need a Bluetooth headset in order to hear your music.
TomTom is also teaming up with Ministry of Sound to bring 30 minutes of pre-loaded music to the watch, along with a playlist created by MoS DJs.
Now as much as TomTom is touting this feature as groundbreaking, we need to point out that you can also do this on Android Wear, but TomTom’s implementation makes it easier to transfer your music.
Fitness tracking and GPS
As far as fitness goes, the Spark has you covered by tracking steps, active minutes, distance, calories burned, and sleep duration. The TomTom MySports app works in conjunction with the watch for setting and tracking your daily and weekly goals. You can follow your progress on the app itself or on the watch. Users can also review their stats on other platforms such as RunKeeper, Nike+, and more.
TomTom has been the leader when it comes to GPS navigation systems so it’s no surprise the Spark includes a GPS as well. It provides real-time information including time, distance, speed, and pace.
Models, pricing and availability
There will be 6 versions of the Spark to choose from:
Model |
Specs |
Available |
Price |
| Spark Cardio + Music GPS Fitness Watch | Fitness tracking, optical heart rate monitor, and 3GB of storage for music. | September 3 for pre-order | £190 ($290) |
| Spark GPS Fitness Watch | Fitness tracking | October 2015 | TBA |
| Spark Cardio GPS Fitness Watch | Fitness tracking and an optical heart rate monitor | October 2015 | TBA |
| Spark Music GPS Fitness Watch | Fitness tracking and 3GB of internal storage for music | October 2015 | TBA |
| Spark Music GPS Fitness Watch + Bluetooth Headphones | Fitness tracking, 3GB of storage for music, and a set of Bluetooth headphones | October 2015 | TBA |
| Spark Cardio + Music GPS Fitness Watch + Bluetooth Headphones | Fitness tracking, optical heart-rate monitor, 3GB of storage for music, and a set of Bluetooth headphones. | October 2015 | TBA |
