Chris Velazco is a mobile enthusiast and writer who studied English and Marketing at Rutgers University. Once upon a time, he was the news intern for MobileCrunch, and in between posts, he worked in wireless sales at Best Buy. After graduating, he returned to the new TechCrunch to as a full-time mobile writer. He counts advertising, running, musical theater,... → Learn More After the disappointing LiveView failed to make much of an impression when it launched in 2010, Sony surprised us when they revealed yet another wearable device — the SmartWatch — at this year’s CES. After taking a brief spin in the U.K., Sony has just announced that their newest diminutive wrist-mounted gadget is now available here in the States for $149. Like the LiveView before it, the SmartWatch is essentially just a small secondary display that can connect to any Bluetooth-enabled Android device running Android 2.1 or later once Read More

With a growing number of mobile apps to track exercise, it’s becoming difficult for software titles to stand out from the crowd. The team behind Endomondo is making an attempt with updates to its Endomondo Sport app on both Google Android and Microsoft Windows Phone. Both platforms have a free version of the app while Android phones can buy a low-cost Pro edition. For Android users, the $3.99 Pro version gains a new interval workout feature. Audio cues will guide runners through their customized workout comprised of fast distances and slow recoveries. Current owners of the Pro version will gain this feature directly through an app update. Both the Pro and free versions of Endomondo for Android can now sync workout data across multiple platforms. Owners of a Garmin Endomondo-ready GPS will have their data sync with the Android app for example. Windows Phone handsets aren’t left alone at the starting Read More

With a growing number of mobile apps to track exercise, it’s becoming difficult for software titles to stand out from the crowd. The team behind Endomondo is making an attempt with updates to its Endomondo Sport app on both Google Android and Microsoft Windows Phone. Both platforms have a free version of the app while Android phones can buy a low-cost Pro edition. For Android users, the $3.99 Pro version gains a new interval workout feature. Audio cues will guide runners through their customized workout comprised of fast distances and slow recoveries. Current owners of the Pro version will gain this feature directly through an app update. Both the Pro and free versions of Endomondo for Android can now sync workout data across multiple platforms. Owners of a Garmin Endomondo-ready GPS will have their data sync with the Android app for example. Windows Phone handsets aren’t left alone at the starting Read More

Something interesting is going on in the Android Market this morning. A bunch of our favorite apps are suddenly going for a dime, with no real rhyme or reason for the discount. @dirkyd3rlc and @Pat_Huey on Twitter alerted us to SwiftKey and Minecraft on sale for 10 cents, and we've found others. (Update: And in the UK, the apps are going for 10p each, not 6p, which would be converted from 10 cents U.S. We definitely smell a trend here.) Here's the list as it stands. There may be others. (Sing out in the comments if you spot any.) Can't tell if this is a glitch (which seems a tad unlikely), or some sort of coordinated effort. Regardless, might as well take advantage. Read More

The company behind the popular fitness app Endomondo Sports Tracker announced that it has raised $2.3 million in funding from SEED Capital. The new money will be used to increase staff needs (hire more developers), expand in the U.S. by adding an office in the San Francisco Bay area, and creating scalable revenue channels to secure profitability by the end of 2012. At the same time, Endomondo also reached an important milestone, surpassing 5 million downloads. What’s more, they have also released some cool data, suggesting that social factor makes exercises easier. For instance, Endomondo users with 10 friends or more are three times more active than users flying solo within the Endomondo community. When people compete with small groups of friends in the tens of thousands of challenges created by Endomondo users, “it’s the fun kicking in.” Finally, we have the words of SEED Capital’s Lars Andersen – he said: Read More

Posted by Comments There are many ways to stay healthy and fit using your Android smartphone. Chances are you will want to download one of these best Android apps for runners, joggers and walkers. These apps can track GPS location with reporting as well as other features like calories burned, monitor heart rate or even provide audible coaching “pep talks”. We’ve included easy one-click download links to grab these apps from the Android Market. Endomondo Sports Tracker (Free, ~$4.20) is loaded with features including audible coaching “pep talks” plus works for biking, hiking and more. CardioTrainer (Free, $9.99) base app is needed with Racing for CardioTrainer ($2.99) add-on app. It stimulates a virtual race with audible coaching among other tracking features. (Free) does a superior job with audible coaching as it allows you to download celebrity voices to encourage you as you track your workouts. Updating... Pages: 1 2 You must Read More

There's no shortage of exercise trackers in the Market these days, but if you're looking for something fully-featured, comprehensive, and user friendly, Endomondo Sports Tracker PRO is the way to go. To start, Endomondo gives you an incredibly expansive list of activities to track. You're not limited to just running or biking with this app. It covers things like badminton, baseball, yoga, and kayaking, just to name a few. If there's something that gets your heart rate going, Endomondo probably tracks it. Endomondo also supports full GPS tracking while you exercise, so if you are doing something mobile and outside, Endomondo can tell you your average mile pace, total distance covered, and time spent working out. It can also give you an estimate of calories burned, based off of your weight and pace. Endomondo also supports Bluetooth heart rate monitors (my favorite part!) so you can check if you're hitting your Read More

If you weren’t aware, Angie and I got married a couple of weeks ago. We had a long engagement (two years), which afforded me plenty of time to work on my pre-wedding goal: weight loss. And it was a tall order- I wanted to hit 200 lbs for the big day, a weight I hadn’t seen the underside of since middle school. A couple of years ago, at my heaviest, I weighed 305 lbs (if I’m being honest, it could have gone higher- that was just when I quit weighing myself). I was living with my brother, Taylor, and a friend from school and we didn’t have the best eating habits (to say the least). We ate out a lot and when we cooked for ourselves the menu consisted mostly of meat. I’d battled weight since childhood, but living wild with a couple of dudes pushed me over the edge. In Read More

Endomondo Sports Tracker, which is yet another fitness tracking mobile app, is bringing together “advanced sports performance monitoring data on Android smartphones.” That “advanced” part comes from the fact that the application now supports the ANT+ health and fitness devices from ANT Wireless. Apparently, Endomondo is the first Android application to support ANT’s technology, which is used in more than 14 million health and fitness devices. The new ANT-enabled capability is available on both free and paid versions of Endomondo; however a smartphone with a built-in ANT+ chip/sensor is required. Unfortunately not all Android smartphones fit this category. Sony Ericsson’s Android-powered Xperia smartphones do, including the , , X8 and Xperia arc. Personally I’m not sure how this new feature helps Endomondo compete with other sports tracking apps, but what do I know. Maybe fitness maniacs really care about ANT’s products. If you have an opinion on the subject, don’t hesitate Read More