Upcoming Gadgets
At last month's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, health and fitness gadgets shared space in the convention halls with new computers, phones and TVs. Today's Boomer generation is getting interested as much in heart monitors and exercise aids as they are in tablets and televisions.
Here's a look at some of the new gadgets for health-minded Boomers that are either on the market now or arriving soon.
BodyMedia FIT is an armband that tracks calories burned and other data during your daily activities, whether you're walking up a flight of stairs or doing a full workout at the gym. The collected data can be viewed on a small optional display and downloaded to a personal computer.
If you take time to record your food intake, BodyMedia's software will merge that information with the calorie data to produce a detailed weight-loss program. The company also sells a version that uses Bluetooth to transmit calorie data directly to an iPhone or Android app. Prices for the armbands start at about $150 at the BodyMedia website.
The FitBit Ultra keeps tabs on you when you're up and moving and when you're asleep. The tiny clothespin-shaped monitor clips to a belt or waistband where it tracks walking steps and stair steps and estimates calories burned and distance travelled. Wear it clipped to an armband when you sleep and it will also tell you if you slept soundly or were tossing and turning.
The $99 FitBit uses a wireless connection to upload data when you're near your computer. There is builds a personal with step counts and pie charts or your daily activity. If you choose, you can share your progress online and get tips and encouragement through FitBit's social network.
The Striiv system comes with another way to get you and your loved ones off the sofa. You know how organized runs and walks raise money for charity? The Striiv is a personal walkathon built into Striiv's $99 pedometer that you can carry on a keychain, belt loop or in your pocket.
Users can link their personal fitness routine to one of three charities. Walk 18,000 steps and a corporate philanthropist will pay for a day's clean drinking water for a child in Bolivia or preserve a segment of the rain forest in Tanzania.
Once everyone is up and on their feet, the Wi-Fi Body Scale from Withings will help everyone track their progress on the road to their target weights. The $159 scale records your weight and body mass index, then sends the readings to a computer, iPhone or Android device where they are logged an converted into colorful graphs.
The free Withings app will keep track of up to eight family members and make the reports available to friends, family members or physicians. And if you and your partner are doing particularly well, post one of those reports on Facebook.
