We’ve known for over a year that RunKeeper would be integrating with the Pebble smart watch, the Kickstarter phenom that raised $10 million in crowdfunding. The first batch of 500 watches shipped in January, and today, RunKeeper has announced that it is officially the first app to integrate with Pebble.
That means if you have the watch, you can start and stop workouts in RunKeeper, as well as see time, distance, and pace, all while your smartphone sits in your pocket.
“People are rightfully excited about wearables because they extend the experience of mobile apps like RunKeeper, so they can be enjoyed without taking your phone out of your pocket,” said Jason Jacobs, CEO of RunKeeper, in a release. “Pebble is such an exciting partner for RunKeeper; it is a great device and a powerful showcase of how your runs, walks and bike rides with RunKeeper can be enhanced by wearable device integration. We look forward to integrating with more wearable devices in the future.”
The Pebble is available for “pre-order” on its website for $150.
The integration is a natural one, as runners have long been used to checking their watches religiously, which has led to a new class of GPS-enabled running watches.
Though the Pebble was met with unbelievable support on Kickstarter, delays haven’t helped its cause. And the smartwatch category is suddenly looking crowded, as Google, Apple, and Samsung all have plans in the works. Nonetheless, the Pebble is the indie favorite, and is still coming to market before the big guys.
For RunKeeper, this is just one step of many to integrate with the increasing number of fitness tracking devices. It rolled out an integration with the Jawbone UP wristband last week, and I expect we’ll see more such integrations in the future. Learn more about the RunKeeper-Pebble integration in the video below:
