SubscribeBodiBeat: Music Player That Changes Tempo
In among the plethora of gadgets that hit the shelves every week, one or two catch my eye (or rather the press release catches my eye).
BodiBeat is a portable music player from Yamaha that detects your jogging or walking speed - and alters the music selection accordingly.
The gadget is aimed at fitness enthusiasts, and I guess would suit any long duration or long distance exercise.
The software that loads the music onto the player is able to detect BPM (Beats per minute). Tracks can then be selected according to pace. When your pace changes, the track will switch mid-stream. You can see an example video here (complete with notoriously cheesy synth music).
The device also records your workout and "Automatically creates session logs, providing information such as average pace, calories burned and maximum heart rate."
Price: $299
Storage: 512MB Flash Memory.
at first, its kinda cool to think that my heart rate will determine the song thats on... but $300??
ReplyMy thoughts too. $300 for 512mb music player is a bit steep.
ReplyShould be more memory. Four gigs would be about right. Wouldn't probably add more than $25 to the price of this device.
ReplyGood idea, but bad execution. I'll stick with my Nike+.
ReplyI also think the price is not appropriate. Let's just give it some time. With it's current price range, It will eventually have a lower cost.
ReplyDid I understand correctly from the demo that the heart-rate monitor is clipped to the earlobe? Yow! I'll wait for another configuration.
ReplyEarlobe clips? Uh, no thanks.
Also, could be kind of annoying to have the track keep changing--wonder if they could make a version that would just speed up the track you were on, Chipmunk style, so the beat stayed right. I'll listen to almost any old junk if it's got the right beat.
But if they work out a few of the kinks, it sounds like great idea. I have a bad case of gadget lust, and love exercise in synch to the beat of a great tune. I'll be keeping my eye on this one.
ReplyMy first thought was that I need my music to be a certain pace to keep me going sometimes. If the music slowed when I did I imagine it would lull me into complacency... Who knows, maybe I'm just overly infatuated with my iPod to appreciate this gadget!
ReplyThere are other modes. You can have the music match what you are doing, you can have the music modulate to keep you at a healthy aerobic pace, you can create your own workouts ahead of time, and you can use it as a regular mp3 player.
I think it's pretty cool. I couldn't afford it, but it's cool. There are other (free) ways of figuring out the BPM of your music, and you can create your own playlists for whatever mp3 player you have now out of them.
ReplyIt's kind of a neat idea, but I usually just put music on my MP3 player that is pretty upbeat and fast...it makes ME run faster, so I guess it's kind of the same principle.
ReplyI just put music that is faster and not so fast on random and then run or walk according to the pace of the music, to create intervals. I wouldn't want the music to match my pace.
ReplyI think this gadget is great. I usually listen to fast pace music at the start to liven up the mood. With its music beat based on the pulse of the user, it can keep up with the tempo.
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