Lots of bad & good reviews for Woo.. do some research. If you want an inaccurate device that gives high or low readings that are inconsistent worldwide.. but put you on a chart that means nothing, to compete against others - the woo is for you, until it dies shortly.
Wait till they get them Waterproofed and Reliable. I have 2 dead ones.
PQ have a waterproof housing that works.
i love my woo and i find that its readings are true. iv also swapped woos mid sesh, and had both going at once and they both read the same.
piq, well this thing is ridicules, there is a young family i ride with and they all use piq. the data is all over the place.
we had a 12yo girl reading 8m+ boosts when clearly they were no bigger then 3m. this happens all the time. and they are quite big.
PS. i dont ride for woo, this is just my findings.
Out of interest, why not Xensr. I got mine as I wanted the GPS data as well. Any particular reason why its not on your list?
Hi Guys. A comparison is great but could you also include price, battery life, ease of use, etc.
I am sure many people would like to hear first hand experiences.
Intoducing the new game changer...
Its called the Poo meter... for best results - hold it close to person after a very big jump
The 'Sweet' zone will make you stand out from all competition
Weebitbreezy..
A little history on Xensr - remember the Shadow box jump meter presale disaster and 'my one' from the U.S leaked into the waterproof housing and died within 10 minutes.. they would not warranty it and lots of people got ripped.
They dissapear.
Xsenr appear, im sure same guys same operating functions, bring out a waterproof arm band with case that plugs into Bottom of Iphone.
Looks the biz and i bought one - endless software problems an unable to connect to gps for recording..
Company promised they have a new model being made and everyone who bought the Xensr case will receive one free - as a replacement.
Did not happen and no response after months of waiting.
The latest version looks good... upped their game ? NOT SO ! Same crap different day - read the problems as discussed in forums..
kiteforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=2393816
The Woo comes out bragging this that and waterproof !!
I buy one, with bugger all use (as it only got used in big storms)
That attachment housing splits it -it gets water in it and dies.
Grrrr feck
The excellent local kite store replaces it instantly... im happy.
Woo is aware it splits and recommend a new housing or will void waranty , which i get and use... it dies on about the 5th session, charge light just comes up and does nothing else.
They are aware of this problem now too and recomend a freekn water proof case - because they are Not waterproof... as stated !
Theres a club in the U.S that bought some for competitions - they have all died (not people) and continually get replaced.
Lots of bad reviews - Easy to find in the kite forums.
So thats why im pissed with these Wannabee developers and their phone accelerometer algorithms that guesstimate height !
None of these can actually measure 'Real' height.
Only the load and 'pop' pressure at the board.
Barometers in altimeters give you height readings.
Best wait a few versions yet - till theres no more bad reviews posted online and the bugs and custmer services are up to scratch.
Imagine if kite lines broke at that rate...
Been working on improving Trace with the developers for 6 months or so....they've translated it from snow to surf now having a go at other watersports...
working on getting useful stuff prioritised (jumps/jump height/session length/gps accuracy/fastest speed/distance covered etc )rather than knowing how many bananas you need after a session...
Bugs are being worked out and so far results are encouraging....small steps....
Truly, I don't know if height is accurate....but are any of them?
Rest of it has been pretty much spot on when compared to an older GPS system (Navi31GT that we've used for windsurfing and kiting for yonks)...tracks and GPS etc all good...
So, if you get one, become a beta tester and help make it even better.....
I'm as confused as when I started this topic, and all the related links more than 20mins ago. I've learnt the four main players seem to be woo, xensr, trace, piq. And possibly in about that order on popularity. That yes, they are effectively toys. Yes they are in early product lifecycle/development, and that some people have had warranty claim issues.
As a kiteboarder, yes an accurate measure on jump height is important, but I also want gps tracking of the session laid over google maps, with speed and distances.
There appears to be no clear winner, though my choices came down to xensr and trace. And as a Mac user, the fact trace is currently a more compatible option has me leaning that way. Also the trace has a nice solid mount, can buy extra mounts for surfing and paddle boarding.
Or maybe, as always with tech wait to see what comes out next year? Thoughts?
These were a couple of good videos along the way:
Yeah, I get that its confusing, took me ages to decide which one to give a go....watched Woos busting and Xensrs failing.....couldn't decide...
Plunged in with Trace as , if u believe what they claim,, it looks pretty good.....
apart from the jump accuracy (if I really am jumping that high, I'm impressed..... I don't consider myself a high jumper....but then again double head height is not that hard is it and that's 4m or so...so maybe I am...)
None of these things is utterly accurate I'm sure.
Some sessions I look at and say "yep, that's sort of what I recall doing" and others I look at and say "Wow,....really???"....
If they can all work on this and get some accuracy in jumps it'll be a great result
The gps side of things is certainly as good as the .sbn files I got from my Navi GT31 (a good choice for windsurf speed sailors...there are other devices, but the Navi has a good history and served me really well)...
i used to look at the files in 'GPS Results'...it shows gps tracks, speed, speed over time etc etc and it does maps in Google Earth.........but no jumps...
So I trialled Trace alongside Navi GT31 and the results are pretty much identical.....speed, average, distance, gps tracks....big bonus is Trace also delivers jumps.
So, from my point of view Trace works .....
being a beta tester I get to send my input and have them consider changing words they use...(jumps instead of 'airs").....
remember they come from a snow background...so they have a strong interest in 'airs', tracking etc etc....they just need to make the terminology relevant to our sport.
I don't know how successful we wil be in getting what we really want ; so far they've been really willing to change stuff and make stats more relevant.
Most of these puppies have one big disadvantage (except Xensr)...you can't get the raw file to load into a program like GPS Results; you have to load it via the app on your phone...
'No big deal' you say..well....
Last year in Aitutaki i watched a guy spend a fortune on phone charges to , so sloooooooowly load his Xensr data to the xensr site and get it back in massaged form so he could read it......
in some places around the world phone is sketchy and expensive.....
so having a program on your laptop to do what the mother site does would be a great idea...
so far they haven't shown interest in this one......seems everyone wants to keep u locked into their interface and server...
I understand their point of view but am trying to find some way around the remote-island-can't -upload-over-the-phone-thing
I'm not willing to take another mortgage to see my Trace data when we go to Aitutaki on our 10 day trips, 4 x a year!
But I still would like to see it daily....somehow
Trace will store a stack of sessions they say......whether it would store 10 days worth I don't know...
Hardware is robust, haven't busted anything yet, mounts are good, nice locking in, charger is simple and effective.....no waterproof issues at all (I crash heaps so it gets dunked a lot!), LEDs are clearly visible...u know when its on
Did have some bluetooth pairing issues with android initially, but all sorted and now no dramas at all.
Like them all you have to buy another when the battery gives up; don't know what the expected lifespan is, but 8 months on going strong....
Hope this info is helpful.....anybody got comments on Trace use?
Watched a friend sync his trace to his Gopro this year on our snow trip, the results were very impressive. The GPS data becomes superimposed over the top of gopro footage and adds another dimension to your videos. Always good to see that top speed as you slide down the mountain.
Thanks for all the post and info !
Still not sure on which one to go with though ! But leaning towards woo 2 .
Hey bluey8, have you tried your new Apple Watch (with GPS) for kiteboarding runs, top/average speed and distance measurements out on the water during a session?
I purchased the Xsenr Air ages ago. Delivery date got pushed back 3 or 4 times. Now they just pushed it back further.
They are hopeless, I asked for a refund.
All these devices sound like a pain when it comes to accuracy and accessible data that makes sense.
I've had a Pebble Classic watch for a while now, and it tells me instantly what height I've jumped simply by looking at the "jump" app on the watch (https://apps.getpebble.com/en_US/application/554f0a794e604bb48200000f).
Sure, it doesn't record jumps stats, it doesn't have GPS, but the watch has other cool apps like compass, speed (in knots or kmh), and other features. Even Barometric readings in case you'll suddenly get gusts coming from nowhere. Fully waterproof to 50m, and syncs with iPhone or Android via bluetooth for even more features with apps on your phones/other devices. After all I just want to know how high I've jumped. Unfortunately Pebble are out of business but there are heaps of these watches about for sale 2nd hand and cheap.
All it cost me was $60!
blog.getpebble.com/2015/04/03/7-secret-tricks-to-power-pebble-like-a-boss/
I like to think I'm a reasonably educated buyer when it comes to this sort of techie stuff. After a weeks research weighing up advantages and disadvantages of the different options, I bought the "new" Xensr Air. Got in before the 1/3/17 for the bonus mounts offer.
Will keep you guys posted on the delivery date against/order date, and a heads up on first few runs...
Bear in mind that the Woo has been in use for some time now and they have addressed issues as they have arisen including replacing failed devices under warranty. Their customer support is quite responsive in my experience.
Their software and leaderboards are also quite mature and highly used
Get a second hand SLR and a $10 dry bag for same price as a woo. The 3 pics of your mates you snap at the end of each session will be far more valuable in 10 years than a spreadsheet of numbers. You will also have ten years to work on editing them into bigger jumps. The Woo will just tell the truth, and ruin all your good stories.