Comments on: First-look video: Wahoo Blue HR heart-rate monitor

By: Jon Tollerup

Jon Tollerup — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 20:32:30 +0000

Does this new device consume more or less iPhone battery than the previous?

By: LouieC

LouieC — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 01:15:11 +0000

Thanks for the quick response, I think this monitor is the one for me ;-)

By: Kevin C. Tofel

Kevin C. Tofel — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 23:10:27 +0000

All of the pace / distance info is tracked by the app via GPS, so no foot monitor is needed.

By: LouieC

LouieC — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 22:28:44 +0000

I’ve been shopping around for a HRM and saw your review, just one question since you showed the data also tracked your pace for your run…was it all tracked with the HRM or did you also need the Wahoo pace monitor for your shoe?

By: Lori60

Lori60 — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 17:23:38 +0000

Runmeter, Cyclemeter and Walkmeter for iPhone are some of the “other” apps that support Wahoo ANT+ and BlueHR that Kevin doesn’t mention. These apps actually offer a deeper implementation and support for BlueHR and more precise health data, such as calorie calculations using heart rate and VO2Max, stop detection based on cycling speed sensor data, and split/interval/zone analysis summarizing more than a dozen data items.

By: Kevin C. Tofel

Kevin C. Tofel — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 14:20:11 +0000

Good question, David. First, the Wahoo Blue HR is backwards compatible with ANT+, so it’s not going to obsolete the tech. But secondly, it doesn’t require any additional hardware: with some ANT+ devices you need a key or receiver that attaches to a phone, making it more unwieldy. Using native Bluetooth — in any version — eliminates that requirement.

Regardless, I think you nailed it in your final sentence: more devices will include Bluetooth 4.0 with support for the new health profiles. It’s simply a more universal standard at this point in mobile devices.

By: David McCormack

David McCormack — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 14:11:06 +0000

In the specific case of sports devices, what is the major advantage of Bluetooth 4.0 Smart when compared to devices using ANT+ which is layered on the older Bluetooth standards? You can pick up a Garmin ANT+ HR strap for $30-35 and it can stream data to any ANT+ receiver. You’ll also get 6-12 months out of each battery. Is it the fact that USB 4.0 is likely to be supported by generic devices such as smartphones and tablets?

By: Chiro777

Chiro777 — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 12:28:03 +0000

Reblogged this on chiro777.

By: Chiro777

Chiro777 — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 12:17:34 +0000

Very cool device, I’ll be purchasing one and testing it out in my office. We do a lot of fitness assessments for post MI patients. I’m still waiting for the day when we have a consumer ECG monitor like this one with remote capabilities.

By: Kevin C. Tofel

Kevin C. Tofel — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 00:00:19 +0000

Correct. I noted that in the video. It’s a shame some of the newer / recent handsets haven’t gone with BT 4.0. :(