With the rise of the smartwatch, it’s now far easier to track and record our workouts. Problem is, we’re not big fans of wearing a watch to the gym, so tend not to bother, which defeats the point of owning the device.
Fitbit devices are becoming smaller, designed as a band for your wrist. But even this can become cumbersome. Ever tried lifting and working with a kettlebell wearing a wristband?
One solution is Motiv, which is a brand new ring designed by a group of ex-Nasa, Apple and Cisco experts headquartered in San Francisco. The team spent five years developing technology small enough to fit the average tech from a basic smartwatch into a ring-sized device. The ring is a tiny 0.1in thick and is as light as a small coin. You wouldn’t know you were wearing it and no-one else will realise it’s a smart device.
The Motiv ring contains an optical heart-rate sensor and accelerometer, to track your movements, calories burned, distance and steps. Motiv say they believe the main reason for using their ring is to track “active minutes” which they regard as moderate-intensity aerobic activity and insist walking wouldn’t count, so don’t buy it to count your daily steps.
Motiv is made in titanium and available in three shades and seven ring sizes
The Motiv ring is waterproof up to 50m, meaning you can keep it on your finger when jumping in and out the pool on vacation or for when you’re swimming your laps. Best of all, it integrates with Google Fit and Apple Health for tracking and storing recorded data. You can charge your ring from your laptop, as long as it has a USB port. Charging from empty takes 90 minutes and the ring has an impressive 3-day battery life.
The makers also think the Motiv ring could prove to be the ideal sleep tool as no-one wants to wear a watch or even a wristband to bed.
The Motiv ring retails for $199 in three colour styles (silver, rose gold and black) and ships in 7 different finger sizes to suit everyone.
Go to the Motiv website for more information.
