The fine folks at Garmin have completely ignored my previous request for sunglasses with a Heads-Up-Display (HUD). Why is it that I can get some random guy to offer to make me a frilly skirt, but I can’t get anyone at Garmin to offer to make me those sunglasses I suggested? Perhaps I overshot current technology with the sunglasses request but I have another suggestion for Garmin today that should be fairly easy to accommodate. Being the easily accommodatable guy that I am, I’m willing to forget all about them stonewalling me on the HUD Sunglasses thing if they’re willing to send me a new Forerunner 405 with the following new feature that I am suggesting today:
Predicted Finish Time. I call it PFT for short, which is pronounced kind of like a quick, quiet fart (pffftt). I think that makes it an onomatopoeia. You would primarily use the PFT feature for races. You would need to input your race distance prior to beginning your workout or race. The Garmin would take the distance you have remaining and multiply it by your current pace, then it would add this to the time that you’ve already been running. The Garmin would essentially tell you what your finish time is going to be based on you maintaining your current pace. Now that’s useful information! Much more useful than some of the existing features that my Garmin has, I mean, have any of you ever used the Sunrise or Sunset feature? How about the distance feature? Totally pointless, am I right?
As always, if anyone at Garmin sees my PFT idea and implements it, or even if they implement PFT without seeing this, they are welcome to pay me royalties for my geniusness. While we’re on the subject of great ideas, I just thought of another one that should be standard on every Garmin, a thermostat. No, I don’t mean a thermometer. I don’t want it to tell me how hot it is, I want to be able to turn the temperature down. Now admittedly I’m not sure how the technology behind a thermostat works, but people have had them in their homes for like, the last 2,000 years or something, so it’s about time we figured out how to make them fit into watches (and sunglasses). Also, how about an incline/decline button like my treadmill has? You want to do hill sprints but don’t have a hill? Just use the Garmin incline button. Tired of running uphill? Use the decline button and you’ll be running an easy 0% grade in no time. There are tons of great things that Garmin could put on their Forerunner series watches, yours in the comments.
I'm all for the PFT idea. It'd also be nice to have the thing be able to perform a full body scan to determine dehydration levels and cramping during the race. Also, recommend a post race pub for some brews.
ReplyDeleteUm...well, along with your glasses/HUD they could also throwin iphone, so you can watch your fav shows while running, or...other things.
ReplyDeleteUh...also, a endo-thermic strip that cools the brow on the those long, hot runs, oh, and a fluid purifier/desalination for sweat...um...other fluids that can be recycled into drinkable water...talk about recycling!
You can run, and run, and run, and run, and run!
If there was a Garmin with a jetpack feature, I would totally buy one.
ReplyDeleteAs for the PFT, I don't think you should have to enter anything. Is it too much to ask for the Garmin to remember a couple important details about your relationship?
Why Garmin has not offered you a job is beyond me. I suggest a mini-laser to zap out any poo that might be trying to lie in wait until it can suddenly appear and ruin a long run. It would also prevent the need to wait in long lines before races only to enter a stinky port-o-poty and discover there is no tp left.
ReplyDeleteFrankly, I don't own a Garmin and therefore was under the impression that it already had the aforementioned features. Geez. What CAN they do?
ReplyDeletePFT is an awesome idea!
ReplyDeleteI love the thermostat idea, but personally, I would like a little tiny customer service representative *inside* my watch so that a) I will have someone on call (like On Star) and b) I can go for a run the next time I'm on hold for 103 minutes.
ReplyDeleteActually the Timex Bodylink has that feature. It was a little wonky, but it was close. I got sick of having to strap 3 different things on to go running, so I replaced it with a Garmin.
ReplyDeleteHow about a cattle prod/taser? Very useful when a bunch of jackasses are spread out across the path and refuse to be courteous and move over.
ReplyDeleteGenius. Pure unadulterated genius.
ReplyDeleteUm, you might want to contact a couple of aerospace companies about your running HUD.
ReplyDeleteI mean, if they can integrate it into a pilot's helmet, they could do it in sunglasses.
2lb sunglasses, but sunglasses.
Love the idea, although when the garmin tells me what time I will finish... it will just say "are you sure your running?" AYSYR?
ReplyDeleteI found it funny. That is all that matters.
Em
Sounds like a actually very doable idea!
ReplyDeleteGarmin should also install a "personal trainer" in the watch that can shout slogans at you while you run: "Master Your Ass!", "Go Past the Max!", etc...
ReplyDeleteI think it can already do this actually. If you set your lap distance to the distance of the race and then display the progressive lap pace, I think you'll be golden.
ReplyDeleteBut... then, you'll lose the per mile progressive pace. But, if you are staying on target for the race pace, it probably won't matter.
I'm open to the possibility that I'm wrong here. But, I'll check it out when I get home.
How about a Garmin that can find the satellite signal without my standing motionless for 5+ minutes? I have tried lifting my wrist high in the air (to get it closer to the satellite, of course) but shockingly, it doesn't seem to help. Plus (also shockingly) it doesn't look very cool.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Just One Marathon on it never picking up the satellites for me. It takes SO long!
ReplyDeleteI also though the PFT feature was already in there when I bought it. It makes perfect logical sense, and I don't know a LOT about computers, but programming-wise, it shouldn't be too hard to do.
It's too bad Garmin can't somehow allow open-source software like the iPhone does... I bet a lot of cool stuff would come out for it then.