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It’s been a while since I’ve posted any ‘new gadget’ reviews, so felt it was time to put that right. I’m very pleased with my iPod Nano, and the Nike+ pedometer is proving a great success (more here).

However, until recently I’d been carrying my iPod in my hands, which wasn’t very good - it affected my posture, and exposed the iPod to the elements. I was not convinced that the Nike armband carrier for the iPod with Nike+ sensor attached was any good - it seems a poor design and makes it difficult to see or control the iPod. I was hopeful then that US outfit Marware would come to the rescue.

And come they did. Unfortunately for UK residents like myself, their new “Sportsuite Relay” setup was not available from any of the main Marware importers after it’s launch a month or so ago. However, I decided I’d buy it direct, and pay the $12 shipping on top of the $29.95 for the iPod Nano and Nike+ arm/wrist-band, and the ‘pouch’ for the Nike+ pedometer. The total in proper money was £22.83p, which compares extremely well to the poor Nike-branded strap. I’m pleased to say that the shipment was about a week (I don’t know precisely, as I was away for the week when it arrived), and there wasn’t (for me anyway) any customs duty to pay - presumably because ‘computer case’ didn’t really warrant attention, much less for such a small amount. Your mileage may vary of course.

The arm-band/iPod carrier is excellent. Surprised you need the ‘extension’ strap to get it around your arm, but I’ve already found I’m not so keen on it being on my arm (given I’m forever jumping tracks), and prefer it on my wrist right now. But then I’m faffing about with playlists all the time, and haven’t found my ideal just yet.

The shoe attachment makes me much more confident that it won’t fall off than with my original hack. Whilst the hack is fine, it’s preferable to have it in a shower-proof holder, and feel more secure.

My only criticism is the iPod is a bit of a pain to get in and out of the sleeve, out of necessity I suppose that it won’t fall out when running. However, it’s a trivial hassle all said.

This is an excellent, I’d say mandatory, accessory for anybody using the Nike+with their iPod Nano, and importing it from the US really isn’t very expensive at all. But I imagine it’ll be available in the UK before too long if you’d rather deal with UK companies.

Sportsuite Relay details here.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 11th, 2006 at 6:10 pm and is filed under Gadgets, Running, Sport, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.