The Moov Now is a tracker that wants to help you get in shape

There’s no shortage of activity trackers on the market. These devices can track things like steps taken, calories burned and how much you sleep at night, but very few of them offer real-time coaching. That’s where the Moov found its niche. The little tracker that was the brain child of a former Apple engineer and two Microsoft veterans was designed to help novice users with little to no gym know-how to get in shape.

The original Moov experienced pre-order sales of more than one million dollars and has continue to perform well on sites like Amazon. Hoping to build on the success of the original, the team is back with a sleeker and more stylish model called the Moov Now.

What is it?

The Moov is an activity tracker, but it’s not like products from Fitbit and Jawbone. Rather than counting metrics like steps, distance and calories burned throughout the day, the Moov was originally designed to be worn during workouts. With the help of its mobile app and a pair of headphones, the Moov is able to provide real-time coaching on a wide-array of activities, including running, cycling, swimming and boxing.

What’s new?

The Moov Now is 44 percent smaller than the original and features a redesigned strap and improved battery life. The rechargeable battery found in the original Moov has been swapped out for a coin battery. This gives the Moov Now up to six months of battery life, which is equivalent to roughly 100 hours of working out, compared to the original Moov’s 8 hours.

The coin battery in the Moov Now is the same as those used in traditional watches and activity trackers like the Garmin Vivofit and Withings Activite. While it significantly increases battery life, some users may find it annoying to have to manually swap out the battery when it runs out of juice.

The original model was meant to be worn only during workouts, the Moov Now is designed for all-day use. While it doesn’t measure steps like a Fitbit or Jawbone, the Moov Now will measure your activity level and active time, in addition to automatically tracking your sleep at night.

There are currently five different apps for the activities the Moov supports. There is an app for cycling, one for running and walking, another for swimming, a boxing app and a seven-minute workout app. All of these programs will soon be unified under a single Moov app.

The app, which will be available on Android and iOS, will include new features, such as a leadership board, and new workout programs, including spinning and high-intensity interval training (a program more commonly referred to as tabata). The new app and workout programs will be supported on both the original Moov and Moov Now.

How does it work?

The Moov can be worn on either your wrist or your ankle, depending on the activity. Some workouts, such as boxing, require you to wear two Moov trackers. You then pair the tracker with your Android or iOS device and start the workout. For an activity like running, you will need headphones to hear the coaching. For the boxing and seven-minute workouts, I simply used the speakers on my smartphone.

The Moov’s coaching is aimed at beginners who don’t have access to a gym or a personal trainer. Coaching is tailored to you and varies based on how you do an activity. When running you may be reminded to lengthen your stride or land lighter on your feet, while the seven-minute workout will guide you through sets of different exercises, such as lunges, squats and pushups.

Once you have completed your workout, you will be able to view detailed information on the activity in the mobile app. For example, after the seven-minute workout I could see which exercises I performed properly, the time it took, the amount of reps I did, and how many calories I burned. The information is different with each activity. To keep you motivated, each program has different levels within it, with each being slightly more difficult than the last.

Availability

The Moov Now is available now for pre-order on the company’s website in black, white, turquoise and red. For a limited time, the company is selling one of its trackers for $59 and two for $99. A single Moov Now tracker will retail for $100 when it’s available this fall.

The original Moov will continue to be sold and supported, but the company has said that it isn’t planning a price drop as this time. I only spend a short hands-on time with the Moov Now, but I recommend it over the original model, unless you can pick it up at a discount price at Amazon or another retailer.

Be on the lookout for our full review of the original Moov in the coming weeks. We will also have a review on the new Moov Now this fall.