Nike+iPod Watches Confirmed: New Details and Photos
January 19th, 2007 by Podophile
A reader who has seen Nike’s Spring 2007 product catalog, which has been distributed to Nike retailers, confirmed the existence of the Nike+ watches… and adds some juicy new details.
(Note: My tipster claims that the pages pictured below were included as last-minute inserts to the catalog, and may have been printed by the sales rep who delivered it. Hence, the print quality.)
Three separate products will make up the line of Nike+ watches: The previously leaked (by Nike) Amp+ and Speed+, and a heretofore unknown Flight+. The Amp+ and Flight+ will work in conjunction with the iPod nano, while the Speed+ will not require the iPod. All three are scheduled to be released in May.
Nike Amp+

The first public mention of the Amp+ was in the Men’s Health Magazine 2006 Holiday Gift Guide. The Nike Amp+ is a plastic wrist controller with a ring of iPod controlls similar to the iPod shuffle’s. There is no traditional watch “face,” but instead, an LED display is embedded into the plastic band above the controls. Besides time and date, it’s not clear what other information can be displayed. The Amp+ communicates tot he nano via the Nike+iPod Sport Kit receiver dongle. The buttons can control voice feedback, PowerSong, volume, track select, ff/rew, and play/pause. It contains a replaceable battery. Five color combinations. Retail price: $79.

Nike Flight+

The Nike Flight+ also includes music controls for the Nike+ enabled iPod nano, but with an LCD face that displays time, date, and chrono (stopwatch). The iPod is controlled by pressing on a “rocking” bezel surrounding the face of the watch. Replaceable battery. Retail price $129.
Nike Speed+

The Nike Speed+ (first leaked on Nike’s own website) is a kit that contains a wrist watch (the Aero+), the Nike+iPod shoe sensor, and a USB dongle. This version of the Sport Kit works without an iPod nano. The information from the shoe sensor is transmitted directly to the watch, and then from the watch to the USB dongle, which is connected to your computer. The LCD face displays distance, pace, elapsed time, and calories. There are obviously no music controls. Replacable battery. Men’s and women’s styles. Retail price: $129.

Obviously, any or all of this information could change between now and May, but since retail outlets are already putting in their orders, it looks pretty well set.
To those who thought the Speed+ was a sign that Nike is turning their back on Apple, looking at the complete range of products proves otherwise. At the $129 price point, I don’t really see the Speed+ cannibalizing many iPod sales. It will primarily appeal to runners who already own another mp3 player (and haven’t been tempted enough to switch by now), or runners who prefer to run without music.
Overall, this looks like a really well-thought-out range of products at reasonable price points. They all seem to add value to the Nike+iPod experience. I’ll take one of each, please.
Update: Looks like the images were subsequently emailed to a number of tech websites. Engadget has posted larger versions here.















Where are they? Would have been fun test’em…could it be that Apple stopped the release to be after the iPhone release. People need to save and spend their money for the iPhone first :)
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