Read my full TomTom Touch Cardio + Body Composition Review here.
On Tuesday at ISPO Munich, TomTom announced their latest product and activity tracker in the wearable technology market, the TomTom Touch Cardio – an interesting variation of their TomTom Touch Cardio + Body Composition which was only recently announced at IFA in September 2016.
There is actually very little to note or say about this new TomTom Touch Cardio. The single and only difference with it compared to the other model is the removal of the Body Composition element.
This means that there is no longer the two silver electrodes (one on the back and one on the front). On the front of the TomTom Touch Cardio, the circular silver electrode has been replaced with the continual flush screen continuing round to all edges; the contoured, concave shape remains, whilst also being touch sensitive like the rest of the screen – touching this circular section is still used to wake the device.
For me, this is certainly a positive and active move by TomTom to follow both the reaction to the initial TomTom Touch whilst also taking advantage of producing a cheap yet capable activity tracker.
Product Differentiation
The confusing thing about this new device is the name as the first TomTom Touch which was released in September was branded as just: the TomTom Touch. To accommodate this new model into their activity tracker line, TomTom have been forced to rebrand and rename the initial TomTom Touch to the TomTom Touch Cardio + Body Composition.
This therefore allows the latest edition to be differentiated from that which includes the body analysis. Simply, the new model is called the TomTom Touch Cardio reducing the likelihood of any confusing between the two.
The Cardio in the name of both the TomTom Touch with and without Body Composition is in reference to the optical heart rate monitor which still remains in the new TomTom Touch Cardio.
The pricing of both variations of the TomTom Touch are as follows:
TomTom Touch Cardio – £89.99
TomTom Touch Cardio + Body Composition – £129.99
Why TomTom have introduced a new Touch?
Removal of Body Composition
For me there are two main reasons why TomTom have chosen to introduce this new product this week at ISPO.
First of all, some of you may remember that in my previous in-depth review of the TomTom Touch Cardio + Body Composition I covered the accuracy and quality of the in-built Body Composition component of the activity tracker.
Read my full TomTom Touch Cardio + Body Composition Review here.
When I covered this feature, I came to the conclusion that this feature was cool but the technology wasn’t quite there yet.
When testing the accuracy of the body fat and muscle analysis I put it up against one of the most accurate and renowned machines on the market, the Tanita machine at Loughborough University which gave a reading (3.3% body fat) which was 370% different to that of the TomTom Touch (15.5% body fat). I was in contact with TomTom to discuss these readings and I haven’t seen many other positives reviews on the accuracy as of yet.
The accuracy levels were fairly good for average weight and body fat compositions, however it really showed to struggle at both extremes.
I understand that this would always be the case as with most new technology such as indoor treadmill use via an accelerometer, however I think it may have just been a bit early for the technology and have no doubt in coming years with firmware updates the accuracy will improve.
Loss of one USP opens the door to another
In my opinion, the problem with the Body Composition was not the only reason why TomTom have opted to introduce a Cardio only version of the Touch.
With the eradication of the electrodes on either side of the pod, this obviously allows for a reduction of the activity tracker’s cost and therefore price to consumers. This knock on effect on the price is the other reason why TomTom have decided to seize this opportunity to release the TomTom Touch Cardio edition after seeing Body Composition hadn’t quite come off.
Other than the slight Body Composition factor, the TomTom Touch was excellent in all fields. Sporting full 24×7 activity tracking; including a very accurate optical heart rate monitor on top of the responsive touch screen and phone notifications – this is an all round activity tracker.
Feature wise, there is very little to nothing more that you could ask for given the price point and the full set of features offered. This for me shows TomTom have taken an opportunity to make a budget yet classy; elegant yet powerful activity tracker.
Now, given the price point, not many (if any) other activity trackers can compete on this price point whilst also offering the level of design and usability of the TomTom Touch Cardio. This, combined with the new success of the TomTom Sports app offers the overall activity and fitness tracking experience all at an accessible price.
The TomTom Touch Cardio will be available to buy in March.
Thanks for reading!
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