Walking Forum

Main Boards => Gear => Topic started by: glovepuppet on 17:56:05, 02/06/19

Title: Activity Tracker
Post by: glovepuppet on 17:56:05, 02/06/19
Due to work pressures and other stuff, I've not been on the forum in a while, but I have a question and thought this would definitely be the place to ask it - so many knowledgeable and helpful folks on here!  :)


I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good activity tracker for hikers - better than a Fitbit as I would like better accuracy for recording distance, but it doesn't have to be a full-blown smartwatch at several hundred quid!


Any recommendations from anyone? I'm not looking for loads of whistles and bells, just a basically reliable model.


Cheers


GP  O0
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: Hillhiker1 on 18:18:55, 02/06/19
I use the 'Strava' APP on my phone for recording my cycling activity, but you can also switch it to record other activities.


It depends what data you want to collect really. It will monitor your speed, splits and altitude etc from your phone's GPS data. But you wanted to monitor, say, heart rate, you'd have to get an add on monitor for that and maybe the 'premium' version of Strava too. (The base version is free.)
There are other, similar APPs for walkers; 'Map my walk' springs to mind but there are others.
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: ninthace on 18:19:48, 02/06/19
Surely there must be an app for it.  What are you looking to record?
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: glovepuppet on 18:22:42, 02/06/19
Surely there must be an app for it.  What are you looking to record?


There may well be an app for it. I suppose I wanted to not drain my phone battery during long walks.


In terms of recording, just basic stuff like distance, calories, heart rate, periods of higher activity, etc.
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: taxino8 on 18:52:26, 02/06/19
If you have an IPhone there’s a free one on there that runs in the background and hardly takes any battery.
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: glovepuppet on 18:54:43, 02/06/19
If you have an IPhone there’s a free one on there.


Ah, no - strictly Android, I'm afraid.


I'll give apps some thought, though. Question is, does using the app on your phone drain the battery very quickly?
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: bricam2096 on 18:55:00, 02/06/19
I use Walkmeter and Viewranger (both of them) to track mileage, speed etc on my iphone, doesn't use much battery at all
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: ninthace on 19:25:20, 02/06/19
ViewRanger will not only allow you to navigate but will also give you total distance, distance v time, elevation v time, total ascent, speed v time.  There must be an app that can convert data that to calorie burn. A reputable app would also require your weight.  It is fairly light on the battery of a modern Android phone - will last at least a day with a good reserve.
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: Chris F on 20:15:41, 02/06/19
I have a Garmin Vivoactive 3 which is pretty good for tracking hikes, heart rate, hills, stairs etc, you can sync it to strava,my fitness pal and most other fitness apps. My brother has the Garmin Fenix5 Plus which has OS maps built in so works like a satnav for hiking, we used it yesterday on the Rhyd Du path and it beeped if you wandered off course, it was pretty impressive.
On my phone the best apps I have used so far are "Strava" and "All trails" both of them have premium features that have to be paid for to unlock the full functionality of the app but All trails has a lot of inbuilt hiking routes for your local area and you can overlay way point maps, weather reports etc, I pay 30 quid a year for it, but with that you get the OS maps.
Title: Re: Activity Tracker
Post by: gunwharfman on 21:13:39, 02/06/19
I use Real Time GPS tracker 2 but cannot identify whether it is is good, bad or whatever? It works, but I just don't know how to make a judgement about it? I also use Wikiloc when I want my wife to know where I am, my real-time position just shows up on her laptop Skype screen. I'm one of those people who will do everything I can to avoid paying out money for an app, just like parking costs, I'll drive mioles to find a free one! I've actually paid out twice since I've had a smartphone, a once only payment for Backcountry OS maps app and once a year for the SityTrail app.