Nike+ is no longer for runners only.
At an event in New York City Wednesday, Nike unveiled a line of digitally connected footwear — some designed for basketball, others for more general workouts — that records data about the wearer and syncs it to accompanying Nike+ Basketball and Nike+ Training apps for the iPhone, iPod touch and web.
The shoes are embedded with four pressure sensors and an accelerometer that can record distance, number of steps and jump height over time. The information used to help athletes better track their activity levels through the course of a workout or basketball game and, if they wish, compare it to others’ data.
The new footwear and apps will be available in retail locations and in the App Store, respectively, in the U.S., UK, France, Germany and mainland China on June 29.
Nike+ was first launched six years ago as a set of running products — shoes, a watch, an armband, a custom iPod nano, as well as apps for the iPhone, iPod touch and the web — that enables users to set goals, record their runs and progress, and compete for virtual badges and against their friends. More recently, the company released a fuel band that records the wearer’s total number of steps and time, and calculates speed and calories burnt in the process. More than 6 million people are apart of the Nike+ ecosystem, according to the company’s own estimates.
Source : Mashable