New Balance has launched the RunIQ Android Wear smartwatch for fitness buffs. The company introduced the wearable at CES 2016 but only became a product at CES 2017 with the tagline, "made by runners for runners."
New Balance created the RunIQ with Intel, Google and Strava. It comes with a built-in GPS, interval functionality and a heart-rate sensor. It also features a water-resistant body with an Intel Atom Z34XX chipset, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity which allows the watch to work just like your regular smartwatch. Its design also fits in with daily life and not only during workout time.
The New Balance RunIQ comes with three physical buttons such as one that opens up the RunIQ app, one as the home button and one which controls laps and music. The smartwatch runs on Android Wear 1.5 and will likely be upgraded to Android Wear 2.0 soon. The RunIQ battery life is good at 410 mAh which lasts 24 hours with regular usage and five hours with GPS. It is not really very impressive but it certainly keeps up with the standard.
The New Balance RunIQ is priced at 299 USD and can be bought from the official New Balance website or Amazon. However, it is currently not available at Amazon yet. The RunIQ appears to be the Android rival of the Apple Watch Nike+.
These smartwatches are quite similar in terms of specs and pricing but RunIQ is about 70 to 100 USD more affordable than the Apple Watch Nike+ which costs 369 USD for the 38 mm model and 399 USD to the 42 mm.
RunIQ is also compatible with many phones including the iPhone whereas the Apple watch is only compatible with Apple handsets. However, the Watch Nike+ comes with different styles while RunIQ only comes in one dark color. RunIQ fully supports Strava as well.