Nike and TomTom partner to create Nike+ SportWatch GPS

We've seen some unlikely collaborations in our time. Eminem and Dido, peanut butter and jelly, Wyclef Jean and Kenny Rogers (no, seriously). But none of those are quite as bizarre as the pairing of Nike and TomTom, who've just formed an alliance to develop the Nike+ SportWatch GPS.

The product is essentially a watch with an integrated GPS unit (plus a shoe-based sensor) that combine to log the distance and time of your run, number of calories burned, heart rate as well as the route you've taken. The watch stores that data so users can analyse the details of their run once they're back at home, crying into a half-eaten kebab, hating themselves for being so weak.

The Nike+ SportWatch GPS has a big LCD display with large, easy-to-read lettering. This shows all the aforementioned run information, provides patronising motivational messages and will even offer messages of congratulation, or 'Attaboys' as Nike calls them, when you break a personal record.

It's possible to connect the Nike+ SportWatch GPS to your laptop or desktop computer via USB, at which point it automatically launches the Nike+ Connect interface. This gives you the option of transferring run information to nikeplus.com, where you can see a map of your local area overlayed with your run route, plus a wealth of other relevant data including total miles run, pace and elevation of the land.

nikeplus.com also lets you set long- and short-term goals and challenges and also interact with other runners. Notably, you'll also be able to search for new routes by location, length, difficulty and by local landmarks (KFCs?), all of which could make your next bout of aerobic torture marginally more tolerable. 

The Nike+ SportWatch GPS is scheduled for release at the start of April.