Heads up! Here’s your massive list of sports tech deals! This includes the Garmin Forerunner 965 for just $499, Garmin Epix for $449, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Black Titanium for $735, the GoPro Hero 12 Black for $299, and plenty more! Go check out the full list here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
I swim, bike and run. Then, I come here and write about my adventures. It’s as simple as that. Most of the time. If you’re new around these parts, here’s the long version of my story.
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You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.Want to compare the features of each product, down to the nitty-gritty? No problem, the product comparison data is constantly updated with new products and new features added to old products!
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Think my written reviews are deep? You should check out my videos. I take things to a whole new level of interactive depth!
Smart Trainers Buyers Guide: Looking at a smart trainer this winter? I cover all the units to buy (and avoid) for indoor training. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
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Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
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FAQ’s
I have built an extensive list of my most frequently asked questions. Below are the most popular.
- Do you have a privacy policy posted?
- Why haven’t you yet released a review for XYZ product you mentioned months ago?
- Will you test our product before release?
- Are you willing to review or test beta products?
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In Depth Product Reviews
You probably stumbled upon here looking for a review of a sports gadget. If you’re trying to decide which unit to buy – check out my in-depth reviews section. Some reviews are over 60 pages long when printed out, with hundreds of photos! I aim to leave no stone unturned.
Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
Have some fun in the travel section.
I travel a fair bit, both for work and for fun. Here’s a bunch of random trip reports and daily trip-logs that I’ve put together and posted. I’ve sorted it all by world geography, in an attempt to make it easy to figure out where I’ve been.
My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
The most common question I receive outside of the “what’s the best GPS watch for me” variant, are photography-esq based. So in efforts to combat the amount of emails I need to sort through on a daily basis, I’ve complied this “My Photography Gear” post for your curious minds (including drones & action cams!)! It’s a nice break from the day-to-day sports-tech talk, and I hope you get something out of it!
The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
Many readers stumble into my website in search of information on the latest and greatest sports tech products. But at the end of the day, you might just be wondering “What does Ray use when not testing new products?”. So here is the most up to date list of products I like and fit the bill for me and my training needs best! DC Rainmaker 2023 swim, bike, run, and general gear list. But wait, are you a female and feel like these things might not apply to you? If that’s the case (but certainly not saying my choices aren’t good for women), and you just want to see a different gear junkies “picks”, check out The Girl’s Gear Guide too.
Good luck at the show. Not sure if CES is more exhausting than a marathon but it is close. :-)
The company I work for gave up booth space and now shows in a private meeting area. So much quieter and can spend quality time with the people you want to talk. Throw in a DJ and food/drinks and people want to go there. :-)
Looking forward to the Karma 2 announcement! ;-)
Ahhh Karma. The good ol’ days!
Ray,
Any sign of the stages l50 in depth review anytime soon? Still waiting for it ;)
Sigh, me too.
Any news for ces on suunto
Suunto does have a booth at CES. We’ll see!
Suunto7
This captures the evolving feel of CES really nicely.
The Strip is now overrun with industrials and auto’s while the CE’s backroom or bail altogether.
Fitbit backroomed 2 years ago … coincidentally as Ionic took a dive in Nov-Dec
Then theres the Gopro strategy … keeps paying for big booth despite no new cams.
Suppose DJI could be most active?
DJI will definitely be the gorilla in the drone section. Though, I don’t expect much in the way of announcements. They’ve shifted that these days to their own events, which works well for them.
As for GoPro, that’s tougher. It’s always a packed booth at CES – there’s no doubting that. Of course, they haven’t made product announcements there in years, but they their CEO usually speaks each year there, and this year is no different. Every year he tends to offer some snippets of what’s coming. Sometimes more clear-cut, and sometimes just hints. We’ll see…
Hi Ray, any chance you could pop by Xiaomi and see what the MI Watch looks like please? It’s loaded with firstbeat stuff. Having owned their phones for years I’ve high hopes for their watch, supposedly 36hr standby, which would be amazballs for Android wear.
Yeah, will give a swing by!
Thank you, in addition to my FR645 I got a wear os fossil sport recently at a silly price.with the sportygo app I can use my stryd, heart rate is mostly right. But the biggest issues are slow GPS acquisition sans phone and abysmal battery life. Here’s hoping Xiaomi nail those problems.
Here’s hoping for some FR655/745 news too, watch addict or a fool and his money…. ?
Hi Ray, Any chance you will be doing a DCR group run?
That would be great (though there’s no way I’m going to be able to keep up with Ray)!
I’d love to, but honestly I don’t see any time in my schedule for one. :( I compacted down my trip this year, but of course it’s already packed with things. Sorry!!!
Hey Ray, will you organize a run for followers in LV?
See above – wish I could!
Love the idea of interesting things up your sleeve, being watches, quite literally under your sleeves ;)
True. There will be some things up my sleeves…though, some things that’s most definitely not fitting up my sleeves.
Hoping for some fitness trackers >- swimming dynamics.
Oh swim devices…one day someone will make them more advanced. :-/
Garmin, Please give me a 945/955 or Fenix with LTE so I can ditch my phone. Calls would be nice, but I mainly just want it for live tracking/safety.
Yeah, I think for live tracking and such – that type of functionality like we saw in the Vivoactive 3 Music LTE is good. Where it all falls apart unfortunately is for iOS users, as iMessage can’t convert over.
Yep I’m fine with VA3m-like functionality (although syncing via WiFi for music would be preferred). I’m and iOS user, but I can deal without iMessage while on runs.
Want to see a new VIRB. Just to keep things interesting.
And for me, a new Blackberry would be cool to see. Sticking with them and, whenever I need to use something else, I’m happy I did.
Nathan – I think you need to join the same club as Bruce waiting for Karma 2 above. ;)
Would like to see a new Garmin Foot Pod with ant+ and Bluetooth as precise as an Stryd but cheaper.
Also a new HRM-Tri with ant+ and Bluetooth, with the Running Dynamics but like the HRM-Dual with the sensor not glued to the strap.
Would buy both.
Hoping for forerunner 655. Hopefully with two size options like in vivoactive 4. Do you know if garmin will have any forerunner announcements? :)
Will be interesting to see what Suunto have coming. There has been a lot of discounting before Christmas so am expecting to see something exciting shiny and new
Suunto 7 is a WearOS watch so that’s a bit of a surprise I guess.
link to suunto.com
Hey do you expect Garmin and Polar to make an announcement during the CES?
I really want Garmin to support Ordnance Survey 1:25k maps on the fenix
Apple, Casio support them through the Viewranger app
I figure the Nuurv Run, an insole with sensors built in will be something you’ll want to check out. Analyzes gait, speed, footstrike, and stride length.
Pretty disappointed with CES, particularly on the Garmin side. Had hoped for a number of new watches being announced such as the Forerunner 655, 745 and also clarification on what the Fenix 6 Sport was meant to be.
I’m looking to replace my existing Forerunner 645M in the next couple of months and it likely comes down to either a Fenix 6 or a Forerunner 655. The Fenix 6 has features such as multisport and maps that I don’t need and is bulkier. Hence was hoping CES would provide more clarity on the direction to go.
Alex
…and thus the challenge with the rumor mill. A lot of times, it’s just rumors spun up to a frenzy.
Ray, I for once was waiting for you to deliver some amazing news from Garmin also either on the hardware or software side. Do you know if Garmin is considering voice commands on their devices ( i.e Alex or Google).