Perfect pedometer?

January 8, 2013 10:01 AM

Pedometer recommendation: is there an open source alternative to Fitbit? Or should I go back to a cheap Omron?

I walk 10-25 miles a week, and I like to track my miles.

A few months ago, I lost my trusty Omron pedometer. It worked pretty well for me:

Omron pros:

* pretty reliable

Omron cons:

* no data download; had to hand-log it
* only stores 7 days of data; anything older is lost
* loses lost when battery runs out

I love the idea of a Fitbit, but I'm not willing to sign up to a website to transfer data, nor do I want to pay to transfer data.

I would love an open source option that would track me reliably, but as far as I know, it doesn't exist yet.

I've tried a few pedometer apps for my iPod Touch, but they've been spectacularly unreliable - they'll work great sometimes, and other times they won't log any steps at all, or stop recording after a few minutes.

What's your current recommendation for reliability plus ease of exporting and archiving data, with no need to use a website or third party to transfer the data?

Thanks!

posted by kristi to health & fitness (4 answers total)

I have a new, unused Omron HJ-720 that I got as a year-end gift from my employer. I already have a pedometer and don't need this one, and it looks like it may not have the drawbacks you listed. I'd be happy to send it to you!
posted by trillian at 10:16 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]

There is a library for the Bodymedia/Bodybugg devices to grab data.

https://github.com/openyou/libsensewear
posted by wongcorgi at 10:17 AM on January 8

I have the same Omron pedometer in my pocket right now. It only displays 7 days of data on the device but it stores 30+ days of activity. The company has a program that you can run on your PC to download your data into. From what I can tell it is nowhere near as slick as Fit bit and the like but it gets the job done.
posted by mmascolino at 7:27 PM on January 8

Trillian - REALLY? WOW! THANKS! I'm sending you a MeMail now.

I'm still interested in any other answers anyone else has, so feel free to comment if you have suggestions!
posted by kristi at 9:13 PM on January 8