After our recent mention of the Kogan TV action, we got word from Kogan they’re spreading their wings and selling some other gadgets. The first we’ve had our hands on is the Bluetooth GPS watch and the first impressions point to a very Chinese, very badly designed piece of kit. But it does have everything you want in a GPS watch – GPS (duh), speedo, heart rate monitor, pedometer, altimeter, and general watch functions. It also operates over Bluetooth to give GPS data to other devices you own.
I’ve spent some time with Suunto and Timex GPS watches in the past, and they just sing. To step back and test out something that is boxy and tough to work with is what really hurts on this one. This is designed like a brick, just a big lump sitting on your wrist. This might be fine if you use when biking, but on foot it can be a little distracting. Some nice points are the mini USB recharge and connectivity, and the inclusion of a car adapter for charging on the road, plus a bicycle mounting bracket.
Selling for $199, it does position very well against other GPS watches on the market. But you are getting what you pay for on this one, and I think that if someone wants a GPS watch, they’d probably be willing to pay more for a better class of product. If you are on a seriously limited budget and you want a GPS watch to play with, sure, go for it. But I’ll be giving this one a miss. [Kogan GPS watch with Bluetooth]