TomTom Spark Cardio GPS Fitness sports watch review

Geschatte leestijd: 3 minuten The sports watch from TomTom that I recently got to test (Spark Cardio) already received the ISPO Award for product of the year 2016/2017, so who am I to then still spend a lot of words on it. Well, I’m Fannetiek. And I still made a review.

The watch

You probably knew TomTom before from the drumroll in your car when you turned on Tommie when you couldn’t find your way again (does anyone else also immediately lower the music? I do). But TomTom also makes sports watches, and I had the pleasure to try out the most luxurious version right away during my morning trap sessions on the spinning bike. Believe me, TomTom Spark Cardio + Music follows every step you take and keeps a close eye on your heart rate. Even on the bike.

One watch for many sports

I say spinning bike now, but Spark can do more. So you can wear the sports watch (including up to 500 music tracks!) during running, swimming, walking, fitness, cycling, (indoor) cycling, and basically whenever you want. TomTom Spark + Cardio measures and knows what you are doing. All day long. And at night too. Super creepy actually. As mentioned, the sports watch not only measures your walking kilometers and calories. It also has an integrated music player where you can store up to 3 GB of favorite songs. You just have to put the included Bluetooth earphones in your ears and press play. While you start a round at full speed, the integrated heart rate sensor measures if you are in the right heart rate zone. Meanwhile, you continue listening to your (preferably hardstyle – the watch performs best on that) favorite playlist.

What I find really cool

Is the design. That stands out. A quite big and robust thing around your wrist may make less fashionable photos than your thirteen-in-a-dozen MK Watch, but this one at least knows how long it takes you to burn your cappuccino. In addition, the watch is very sensitive in tracking your heart rate. I even wore the watch alongside another sports watch that I consider very good (during a review-cardio session – sh*t just got real yo) and they were quite evenly matched. The TomTom won in terms of accuracy and the speed with which changes in heart rate were detected. Another plus is that you can set heart rate goals. Do you want to work on your condition? Can. Do you want to be in a fat burning state of mind (or heart, actually)? Can too. It can all be done. Handy.

MySports

In MySports – the online environment where you have to create your own account and export apps like MyFitnessPal so that they also sync with your watch – is (after some searching and shouting ‘huh’ a few times) clear. So you have to create an account online first. Then you can choose from a lot of apps that you export, so that they can also sync with your watch. You can view MySports via a web browser or via the app for Android and iOS to quickly see all your activities and details, adjust or set goals, or view your progress.

The Conclusion

In my opinion, the TomTom Spark + Cardio is a very nice sports watch, somewhat large (the straps are available in different sizes (and colors!), but very accurate when it comes to measuring your activities and heart rate. Very good to use for various sports, but also handy if you just like to walk (like me) and want to keep track of it. For all cardio-noobs and endurance athletes among us, this watch is a godsend. For the macro- and calorie-noobs (like me) also handy because the app also links to MyFitnessPal. The TomTom Spark + Cardio (and its brothers and sisters) are available at CoolBlue. Now I’m curious, do you use a sports watch? And if so, which one?