iPhone/iPad App Reviews

Nike+ GPS iPhone App Review

The Nike+ GPS app, from iTunes in the app store, is a great application for training and engaging with your friends for sharing, feedback and motivation for new or advanced runners.

So who is this app for? If you run, whether outside or in a gym or on a treadmill, and you have an iPhone (any version), iPod touch, or iPad (though I question your sanity if you are iPadding and running) this is for you. It does not track calories, or other types of fitness – just running. It should also be noted that there is a version that doesn’t use GPS, but requires the $29 sensor/antenna to go in your shoe to measure your stride and pace. Considering the GPS version of the app is only $1.99, the choice here is obvious.

When you first start up the app, you’ll want to go to the Settings tab on the lower right and in your profile enter English or Metric, your height, weight and gender. You’ll also want to select a selection of Power Songs, which you will be prompted to play as you approach a goal (you can also play these anytime you want by tapping the screen). Next, you’ll want to register for an account on nikeplus.com, where your running information will be synched, but also where you can select additional challenges, add goals, invite friends to share your progress with, and much more. [It should be noted there is no fee to use these features of the site].

Next, you’ll want to add friends, if you have any, to the app. Unfortunately at the present time, this can only be done through the web site, and does not have the ability to pull in users of Twitter or Facebook, just Gmail. Plus, for me at least, the Gmail import does not seem to work. If it allowed you to add people in your social networks as well as if Gmail worked, this would be a 5-star app in my opinion. So for now, the only way I can add friends to this app is to search by name. If you’d like to friend me in the app, search for me and send me an invite!

You are now ready to run. Get your sturdy earphones ready and start the app. On the home screen it will tell you your total miles using the app on that device.  Sorry, but even though you sync data to the web site, if you upgrade devices you will not see your overall total. The site does record and show overall totals, so you don’t lose this data. You can either Start a New Run, Do a Challenge which allows you to try to beat your last runs time, distance or speed, or you can play Tag (a game in which email invites will be sent out for a virtual running version of “Tag, You’re It”). In Tag, the losers are subject to having trash talked about them on their home screen until you win a game of Tag – which I suppose sounds interesting, although as a new runner I have yet to use this feature as I would constantly lose.

To start a new run, you are then prompted to enter Time, Distance or Basic (which just tracks however much you do), pick your playlist for your run, the location and whether to “Get Cheers.” If, in setup, you selected Twitter or Facebook posts (mine posts at the beginning and end of each run), then your friends/followers can comment on this and you will get those “cheers” real time in your app during your run. I personally love this option as it is a great motivator to me. So if you follow me on Twitter or are friends with me on Facebook, feel free to give me encouragement and I will do the same. Let’s all get healthy!

Note: there are a ton more features of this app, but half the fun is discovering them for yourself. Play with it, $1.99 towards something that can encourage you to be healthier and ties in your social networks and friends is not wasted money.

Nike+ GPS > My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars