Pedometer++ embraces the Apple Watch in latest update

Pedometer++, a pedometer application for iOS that counts users’ daily steps, is doing something a little unexpected (but nevertheless brilliant). It’s embracing the Apple Watch.

With its built-in Activity application, some users might feel that the Apple Watch has the potential to replace iOS apps like Pedometer++. Yet Dave Smith, the developer behind Pedometer++, doesn’t agree. Instead, he’s striving to reconcile the Apple Watch with his application through making each one work with the other in perfect harmony.

He’s doing this through introducing Data Sync for Pedometer++. This feature is designed to “merge the steps you take with your Apple Watch intelligently with your iPhone,” according to the developer.

Smith explains in a recent post:

As you go about your daily life with an iPhone and Apple Watch each is constantly trying to measure your movement to determine if you are walking. Depending on what your current activity is, one or the other will be doing a better job of capturing what you are doing.

If, for example, you are pushing a stroller the iPhone in your pocket will do a much better job than the watch on your wrist. Conversely if your iPhone is in your purse, the watch on your wrist is much more accurate. The challenge this update solved is how to merge these two data sources in a way that provides a consistent and reliable picture of your day.

The developer goes on to explain how his application goes about doing this. “The result,” however, “is that you will get credit for more of the steps you are actually taking.” In his testing, the Health app was found to be “undercounting” most users’ movement by around 10-20 percent; now, Pedometer++ makes it possible to avoid this and gain more accurate (and, as a result, higher) pedometer readings.

Two further changes to Pedometer++ involve complications and Workout Mode. The first adds complications to watchOS 2. These update through the day, and show users’ progress towards their step goal. If you opt for the longer complication, you can also enjoy reading your current step count and distance travelled.

Pedometer++ for Apple Watch.

Second, a Workout Mode is designed to outright replace the application which ships with the Apple Watch. The main change here is the ease of starting a workout: rather than navigating through the Digital Crown, among tiny icons, and into the Workout app, Pedometer++ allows users to tap a complication and touch “Start Walk.” From here, your workout will be tracked.

The data display is also geared entirely around showing you all the information you might want to know about your walk on the same screen without swiping back and forth. You get a nice large step count showing your progress towards your goal. Then the time walked, active calories, distance and current heart rate. Once started the workout screen will persist as the default screen when you raise your wrist until you end the workout with a force touch.

All of this sounds great to us, and as such there’s never been a better time to take Pedometer++ for a spin (especially since it’s available free of charge). Check out the latest version of the app, and get walking!

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