The future?

Ever want a product that hasn’t been developed yet? Well today, that’s me. I’ve been following lots of running blogs and listening to running podcasts and it seems that many runners greatly improve their training by monitoring and tracking their heart rate. So yes, I want a heart rate monitor. There are several on the market, and I’ve even put some reasonably priced heart rate monitors on my Christmas wish list.  But what I really want isn’t yet available.  I want a heart rate monitor that integrates with my Nike+ kit and my iPod.  

This would be a great feature to have, and from the Google searches I’ve done, I’m not the only runner that thinks so.  So, there is already a market for this feature.  One of the latest new gadgets from Nike is the AMP remote control watch that integrates with Nike+.  I think they fell short on this one, as they could have easily put pulse monitoring in the wristband.  At any rate, this device opens up the possibility of multiple peripherals communicating with the receiver in the iPod.  So, a heart rate monitoring device may not be far behind.  

In fact, my Google searching turned up an article on Gizmodo that claims exactly that and more!  The article was published in April, 2008 and claims that the latest patent for Nike+ shows all kinds of sensors monitoring heart rate, temperature, and hydration levels in addition to the sensor in the shoe for monitoring pace and distance (see picture above).  I could really care less about my temperature, and I think I have a pretty good grasp on keeping track of hydration levels while running, what I really want is the heart rate monitor!  

As soon as this product is on the market, it will be on my wish list for sure!