Garmin Forerunner 35 adds heart rate monitoring to line-up

Garmin has announced a couple of devices ahead of IFA 2016, with the prominent being that its Forerunner sports tracker getting a slimmer design and new features.

The Garmin Forerunner 35 is a GPS-enabled running watch that comes with wrist-based heart rate monitoring and can be used as a general activity tracking device too.

Thanks to the built-in GPS, it can track how far, fast and where users are running, while matching heart rate to runs for extra information.

It syncs with the Garmin Connect Mobile app for iOS and Android to store and compare tracking statistics. Data can be saved online to a free Garmin Connect account for future browsing.

Runners can even compare workouts in real time and set challenges and goals online.

The watch has an updated, sleeker design that the last generation, and comes with a high resolution mono display. There are modes for walking, cycling and cardio workouts as well as those involving pounding the pavement.

It can also be used as a smartwatch to control notifications and music played from a connected phone, while the battery life lasts up to nine days in activity tracking mode, 13 hours in training mode.

The Garmin Forerunner 35 will be available this quarter for a suggested retail price of $199.99 (around £150 at today’s exchange rate).