Customer Reviews

Apple Nike + iPod Sport Kit for iPod nano 1G, 2G, 3G

5 star:		(100)
4 star:		(34)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

I'm usually somewhat jaded when I see technology, and I was skeptical this would be much better than an equivalent $10-15 pedometer. However, Apple has once again proven that details matter.

I bought this for my wife (forget about having to have Nike+ shoes - it works fine slipped into laces or in a shoe wallet). She plugged it into her first-gen (1G) Nano, and instantly the Nike+ menu option appeared. There's a little calibration that has to be done, but once you get going, it's just neat. You can specify your workout type (distance, duration, just go), and then select a playlist (or shuffle, or something else) and you are off!

There's even a built in voice that will give you a verbal run summary at the touch of a button (and at scheduled intervals).

I run with a fourth-gen (4G) big (disk) iPod, and no, it doesn't work with my iPod. Too bad. I might have to get a Nano just for running - this is too cool, and saves the time off of keeping a running log - it keeps one for you, which you can upload.

Good:
-don't need Nike shoes
-works amazingly well out of the box
-easy to use
-neat features (like voice alerts about pace, distance, etc)
-ultra-light
Bad:
-only works with the Nano
-supposedly can't replace the battery in the shoe transponder - we'll see about that
-some calibration required

First off this is a great addition to all the weekend warriors out there. It can help keep you motivated via the headphones or the internet (when you get home)

There are some minor things you should know about when owning one of these kits.

1. You have to have an iPod Nano, not a video, iphone, classic, shuffle, whatever... I plugged this into my ultra cool iPod touch and it did not work.

2. Put the disk inside your shoes tongue or get one of the lace kits. Dont buy the shoes built for this. (see next)

3. If you are not headed out the door DO NOT HAVE THIS IN YOUR SHOE! The battery will die and youll need to buy the sender unit (the red thing) again. If you run out to get groceries in your car make sure this is out of your shoe. Having one in your shoe and not having the iPod on will not save all your walking data.

Motion (of any kind even riding in your ash tray) will use up the battery! Take it out and place it on your dresser. Unless you live in a volcanic area it should last a long time.

4. Get a good belkin or other nano type running case. This will help.

All in all a great product. If you treat it well it is a great help for your fitness routine.

edit:
Just figured this out, if you use an ellipticle machine you can tape the sensor to the arm at the farthest point back. It is not 100% accurate but it does read fairly close. Basically you will lose 1/10th the run (or so on my em)
Hope this helps! You can check my progress: http://runnin2lose.blogspot.com

I can't say enough good things about this product. I got mine at Christmas and I love it. Let me start by saying that I hate running and walking. I find walking to be boring and running to be no fun at all. In the six weeks that I have owned this device I have run/walked almost 80 miles. I can say for a fact that this is probably more than I have run/walked (directly for exercise that is) in my entire life leading up to this point. I love bike riding and swimming but I can't swim at any time of the day and as much as I love biking you have to go so much further to get the same results and there just aren't enough places to bike near my house.

The main reason that this is so motivating is the Nike website. When you sync your iPod your information is uploaded to the Nike website where you can view great charts and graphs of your runs. It tracks your records as well (fastest mile, furthest run, etc.) It allows you to set goals (run 40 miles in 4 weeks, burn 10,000 calories in 4 weeks, etc.) It also allows you to challenge other people with this device. Well, my best friend got one for Christmas as well. He lives 250 miles away and we are already on our second challenge. The first was who can run the most miles in 30 days. The current is who can run 60 miles first. The website keeps track of your progress and shows you how far each participant has gone so far. So you can see if you are ahead or need to pick up the pace. It is great and makes you want to run further and more often.

I always knew I was competitive but I never realized how competitive I was! The other day I ran 7 miles (further than I have ever gone at one time in my life) just so that I could get a good headstart on my friend!

Fun piece of kit but if you are a serious runner expecting accurate results there are some major flaws in the product.

1. starting and stopping your workout is not a push one button job - you have to scroll through menu's - so if you are on the starting line looking to do your best 10km and then the gun goes off, everyone will be long gone before you get through the menu's to start your workout. Stopping too is not simple - if you are just out having fun then it is not a major issue.
2. Accuracy - though you can calibrate the sensor it is not 100% accurate - typically my wife and I have both found that if you can get around 90% to 95% you are doing well - however that is a 1km or at least 500m out every ten. So again not that useful if you want to measure your best 10km time
3. Downloading to Nike has its problems too - you just need to read the forums to see how many problems people have with their best times not being recognised, not been given their trophies, distances and times not matching up etc. etc. etc.

Bottom line - fun for keeping a more or less record of what you have done - useless as an accurate log of your times and distances

I believe this product can be accurate. I ran a half marathon a few months ago, and assuming the course was accuratley measured to 13.1, my little Nike+ was only off by .3 miles, saying I had run 13.4 miles. Sure, it was a little disappointing to think that I was nearly finished when I still had a third of a mile to go, but think about it...it's a stinkin' pedometer, not a GPS, and over 13.1 miles it was off by .3...normally when I run for 3 - 6 miles it's pretty dang accurate.

I did have to do two things to get to that level of accuracy, however. The second is the obvious one: calibrate it. The first thing, though, needed to be first in order to get an accurate calibration. And it was less obvious.

I do not have Nike shoes. At first I heard all sorts of reports of Nike+ success with non-Nike shoes, so I was optimistic. My first few runs, though, were definitely not accurate. I suffered the same inaccuracy bemoaned by other reviewers here...a 3 mile run according to Yahoo maps clocked in at 0.25 miles. And half of that was an "intensity" of 0. Yeah...not so good.

But that's when I started experimenting with how I attach the transmitter to my shoe. I found that placing it at the bottom of the laces, on top of my foot, in as level of a manner as I could manage, produced more reliable results.

What I believe happened was that my early attempts involved putting the transmitter in my shoe in such a way that it was angled in one direction or another. And the transmitter doesn't like that. The Nike+ shoes allow the transmitter to be flat in relation to the sole...I think the transmitter works best if it's level like that.

Also, it seems that if I ever don't secure the transmitter down well enough and it has some wiggle room, I'm also liable to get inaccuracies.

So, figure that out first -- I'm definitely thinking of just buying some Nike shoes. But once that's taken care of, calibrate the thing, and do it carefully. Go to a track so you can be assured of the distance. Also, calibrate a few times, because when you actually start calibrating and when you actually stop calibrating involves several button presses. I found it helpful to put some music on that matches my stride speed, get it started, run half a lap to get "in the groove", be ready to calibrate, which as I mentioned involved several button clicks so get right up to that last button click, then press that last button at a lap marker. Then be ready to stop calibrating in the same way; it takes a few clicks, but try to figure it out so that you'll hit that last click RIGHT on the lap marker. It took me a few tries, but once I got it, it's been really accurate.

The Nike+ website is the best part of all. It's really fun and encouraging for me to look at my runs in that way...I can watch my progress. I can set goals, such as "I want to run faster, so I want to run 4 runs in the next month that are X:XX per mile or faster." Plus you get little "awards" for various milestones. Oh, and Lance Armstrong or Paula Radcliffe might congratulate you at the end of your run if you hit some personal record.

All in all it's the best $30 I've spent on my running (I already had the iPod).

This Nike + iPod sport kit is excellent. I got it and it was ready to use out of the box. It was synchronized already and the only time it does not seem synchronized is when I run on the treadmill. I do not have the special Nike shoes, but I just put the sensor in the side of my shoes and there has been no problems when I run. I do take it out, however, when I play basketball. I have the very first version of the Nano, so I had to download some updater software, but it is easy. I like the Nike+Plus website, but I have heard some people note that it could be better.


PROS:
-Update your runs on any new version iTunes (Mac or PC).
-Voice reminders about distance remaining, pace, time run, etc.
-Don't necessarily need Nike shoes
-Synchronized and ready to use out of the box
-Compatible with any iPod nano version
-Adds no weight or discomfort to the Nano
-Great motivational and competition-inducing tool

CONS:
-Only available with the Nano
-Sometimes seems unsynchronized (treadmill)
-You cannot do battery replacement yourself
-Potentially easy to lose if you leave it lying around
-Need to go back to a previous menu to end runs

So I have been using this item for about 6 months running about 2-4 times per week.

Pros:
-does work without NIKE shoes. I had to buy a Velcro strap for 1.99 of EBAY. The strap is to work intensive to take off on and on so be prepared to leave it on. Someone at the track I run at has a pouch and they said it is not accurate enough.

-very fun: talks to you, has lots of options including miles/kilometers, distance modes, calorie modes, time modes and an easy to use Nike/Ipod website to track your progress and compete against others.

-it does pretty much exactly what it says it will do and so far I've not had any technical problems. Once my ipod ran at of battery while running and it still kept that current run.

Cons - these are all minor:
- calibration is a must. I need to calibrate every other week to keep it accurate so if you don't have access to a track or an exact distance (at least 400 meters) this product is not for you.

-the website data does not incorporate temperature of run. I feel this would be easy to do (correlate zip code with time of run) with current internet abilities and is important since running in a 90 degree heat is not the same at running on a 60 degree night.

-only works with nano IPODs.

Bottom Line: Overall I love this product and I've noticed others at the track I run out using it and positively commenting on it. Yes it's from the dreaded NIKE but if it gets people motivated to exercise then I'm all for it.

Couple things to keep in mind before you buy this:

1. Check the Apple and Nike support forums. There are tons of people having two specific issues with this item. (1) It periodically drops your workout in the middle and you lose all of your data. Neither companies are offering any support. They either blame it on sweat or a loose connection. How can an item made for working out be susceptible to sweat or vibration? (2) It isn't always the most accurate. For best accuracy I recommend you get the shoes. A lot of people are having inaccurate distances using the little pockets you tie to your shoe to hold the transmitter.

2. Nike is coming out with a new product called Nike+ Sport Band. You wear it on your wrist and it does most of what this current system does without the iPod. This way you can you different types of iPods or MP3 players and hopefully it will be a little more durable to seat and vibration.

That being said I know there are tons of people that are not having any problems with theirs. Just wanted you to be aware of those that are having issues. When it works it's awesome and is very motivational and good for goal setting. A big part of this is the integration with the website.

After reading a few articles that state that this kit can be used with both Nike and non-Nike shoes (using a pouch that clips onto the laces), I tried it with my Mizunos. I calibrated it on a treadmill, and it seemed to be pretty accurate there compared to the treadmill odometer. So far so good.

However, when I went out to run on the street where my pace and stride vary quite a bit, it was less accurate. The problem seems to be that when I speed up, my stride lengthens but the Pod doesn't account for that. So it shows me going slower when I'm actually going faster.

I spoke to a guy at a Nike trailer at a race who indicated that the accelerometer in the sensor doesn't work properly in the little pouch on top, but would give much more accurate results if it were in the sole of a Nike shoe. My trail shoes will need replacing soon. If I can find a Nike shoe with a wide enough toe box, I may give them a try and write with more results at a later time.

I've been a fairly casual runner for a few years. When I was given an iPod Nano as a gift, I figured why not throw in my $30 and give the Nike+ kit a try. I've had it for about 3 days, and I'm amazed how much I look forward to running now. Nike+ almost turns it into a game, where you can see how you've done and if it was better than last time, etc. I set up a "challenge" today with a friend who lives in another state -- first one to 25 miles. I'm eager to get started. On first use, I ran my typical 2.00 mile trek, and unfortunately, it registered as 2.58 miles. After calibration, I found it a lot more accurate. Overall, very easy to use and syncing to [...] couldn't be easier!