Will iPhone with GPS be able to do this?

[matttyl315]

I'm a very frequent runner, doing 30+ miles per week right now, and ramping up to 50+ miles this summer in preparation for 2 marathons this fall. I normally wear my iPod nano for music/podcasts to listen to while running. I'm also very much considering spending $300 or so for a Garmin 405 watch.

For those who might not be familiar with the Garmin 405, it's a GPS enabled watch that gives you a constant, up to the second, report on your distance traveled, elapsed time, and therefor your current pace. It will also compare your current run in real time to a previous run you've done on the same course (to see how far ahead or behind you might be for the last time you did the same course). Needless to say, for a runner like me, these things are so cool!!

I'm just curious if a GPS enabled iPhone might be able to have the same or similar capabilities. Bonus for me, it would just replace the iPod nano I currently use. Might it be able to give me an accurate account of how far my run has been (distance and time), and then be able to calculate my average pace for that run?

I'd just had to throw down $300 for this watch if an iPhone (which I also plan to purchase) will be able to do the same thing. Thanks for any help you might be able to lend.

[deftdrummer1]

It would be nowhere near as convenient as a gps watch, but with the popularity of the iPhone and the upcoming sdk I'd say anything is possible. Although, your watch does what you want it to right now.

[matttyl315]

I'm just looking to see if this is capable if the iPhone were to have GPS, which has been widely rumored.

Right now I use the Nike+ thing on my nano, though it's a pedometer, and not really accurate. Plus, you have to use the shoe thing, which is only "fully supported" in Nike shoes, which I don't (and won't) use. I have to use a pouch thing, but like I said, it's not really accurate, but a great attachment for the price.

I'm willing to wait a few weeks to see if something like this comes out than to throw down a few hundred for the watch, though. If, on the other hand, the iPhone doesn't and won't have these types of capabilities, I would feel differently.

[sabresfan007]

To start, we're banking on the new phone to have GPS...that taken into consideration, the phone won't be able to do that out of the gate, but possibly a developer created app will be a solution for a situation like yours.

[collegestock]

Yes, you will be able to do all these things with iPhone applications. I'm actually working on a software team developing an application called iRunner(TM).

You can track distances, pace, track your runs (beat your best time in same route), everything that the Garmin unit can do plus a lot more. One time download cost is $40.

Don't expect our release before the end of summer, though. Probably closer to Q4.