MotionLingo ADEO GPS Fitness Trainer

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by Judie Hughes

August 18, 2006

I recently bought a Nordic Track treadmill, which I absolutely love; not only does it have all of the expected features, it can also accept iFit workout cards. These SD shaped cards offer different workout programs with progressive levels of difficulty along with the positive feedback of a trainer verbally telling me what's coming up, as the console displays what I have done. Largely because of this type instant feedback, I have always preferred walking on a treadmill to walking outdoors. But today I am going to introduce a product that provides verbal feedback for many outdoor activities, eliminating one of my main excuses for preferring to exercise indoors.

If you walk, run, rollerblade, Bicycle, ski, snowboard, or do any other outdoor activity that moves you from point A to point B, then you'll want to take a look at the MotionLingo ADEO Fitness Trainer. This GPS enabled device attaches to any digital music player and actually provides feedback similar to that of a treadmill, both verbally and on the user's computer.

Specifications:

Included in the package are the ADEO, a black neoprene workout belt, an audio cable, a USB cable, instructions and a setup CD.

The ADEO is a creamy white plastic device that measures approximately 4" tall (including antenna) x 2" wide x 0.5" thick. The left side of the device from left to right has the Lap button (for pressing as laps are completed on a circular course) and the Start/Stop Workout button.

The back of the ADEO has small icons that indicate the various buttons' functions. These icons are great - but you'll most likely never see them when actually using the device.

The buttons on the right side of the ADEO (from left to right) are Forced Update - to hear immediate updates while in the middle of a workout, Scroll - to advance through the various Update Routines, and Current Time - which tells the current time of day during a workout.

The top of the ADEO has the LED status light, the Audio In from MP3 (using the included audio cable), and the headphone jack.

The device's bottom has a mini-USB jack and the Power button.

Before the ADEO can be set up and used for the first time, it must be plugged into a USB 2.0 port and charged. As it is charging, a green LED will glow; once done the light will no longer glow. I was surprised that it took about five hours for the ADEO to charge the first time, but evidently anywhere from four to six hours is typical. I wonder if using the optional AC charger might help to speed things up a bit? Battery life is approximately six hours.

Once the green light goes out, the ADEO is charged and the software can be loaded on the user's computer. During the setup process, the user will be prompted to setup a free MotionTrak online account.

From the online account, it is possible to set goals and even email triggers to let you know when you are or aren't on target.

Now it's time for an actual workout! The ADEO goes into the left device holder on the neoprene belt...

... and whatever MP3 player the user happens to own - as long as it is no larger than a 4th generation iPod ( approx. 4" x 2.25" x 0.6") - goes in the right pocket. The audio cable goes from the jack on the ADEO to the headphone jack on the digital music player. I should point out that my 4th generation iPod was an extremely tight fit, and the strap used to secure the player in the pocket would barely close over it.

Add to this a set of headphones, and the newly loaded bat belt is ready to go...which I will admit is why I wasn't really enthusiastic about breaking in the system.

You see, the belt looks like a large neoprene cummerbund when you step outside. The idea is that you'll place the devices in front of you - get a lock on the GPS satellites, start the workout, then turn the pod around to the back and get started, which I did; although I couldn't help but feel like a tool...but that would pass.

From the moment I heard the female trainer's voice over the Gorillaz song that was currently playing, I was hooked. I had conned Sarah into going for a walk with me, so I knew in advance that the workout would be a little less intense and a bit shorter than I am used to on my treadmill, but what I didn't expect was how much fun it was going to be.

We walked for almost thirty minutes, and every now and then the trainer would interject the total distance traveled, our average pace, our current pace, the time of day, elevation when it changed (only once in my mostly flat neighborhood), and calories burned. The experience was really cool...well, relatively speaking as I was wearing a thick black neoprene cummerbund around my waist in 100ºF heat. :0P

The combination of good music coupled with near instant workout feedback was awesome. I would soon find out that I was in for a treat once I got on my computer...

After attaching the ADEO to the USB cable, I clicked the Get Workouts button onscreen, prompting an upload of the information on my device. I was able to enter information about the workout, and the software filled in all of the blanks - even adding the number of miles added to the shoes i had previously entered.

Online, I was able to access planning tools, weather information, and an activity journal for my workout.

An Activity Report gives instant information on completed workouts...

...but once of the coolest features was this one - the Activity Details page which showed an actual map of Sarah's and my walk, superimposed over a Google satellite map of our neighborhood.

The ADEO was extremely easy to set up and use, and the addition of verbal feedback made outdoor walking in the 100ºF heat almost enjoyable. I say almost, because by the time we had completed our 1.1 mile walk, we were drenched in sweat and ready to come home! Listening to the ADEO's verbal feedback is almost like having a trainer along for the walk - someone constantly monitoring progress and spouting immediate stats that I would have otherwise only guessed at - and most likely erroneously so.  The ADEO is truly a fabulous tool for those that prefer to get their exercise outdoors; once cooler weather arrives, because of the ADEO - I might just be one of them!