Wahoo has launched a new heart-rate monitor, the TRACKR, with a rechargeable battery offering a claimed 100 hours of ‘active’ battery life.
Heart-rate monitors, including Wahoo's existing TICKR, typically use a coin-cell battery which needs to be replaced once expired, but the TRACKR moves to a lithium-ion battery charged via a proprietary port on the rear of the pod.
Wahoo says the TRACKR “solves long-standing consumer, environmental, performance, and safety pain points associated with HRMs by eradicating the use of coin-cell batteries”.
Regardless of that, training with a heart-rate monitor remains a cost-effective and relatively simple way to use data to guide your riding, compared to a power meter (even if the latter offers more advanced metrics).
The pod itself has an IPX7 waterproof rating, and offers ANT+ and Bluetooth connectivity across multiple devices, including bike computers and the usual array of popular cycling apps with HRM integration, such as Zwift and Strava.
Wahoo says you can connect up to three Bluetooth devices simultaneously.
The pod measures 6.15cm x 3.05cm x 0.95cm and uses a redesigned chest strap with what Wahoo describes as a “non-invasive side closure”. The claimed weight for the pod and strap is 51g.
The Wahoo TRACKR will cost £79.99 / $89.99 / €89.99 / CA$119.99 AU$149.95. Wahoo says it will be accompanied later this year by a newly-branded range of TRACKR accessories and sensors.
