TomTom Spark 3 Multi Sport GPS Fitness Watch - Small Strap, Aqua

Product Information

Despite TomTom’s in-car sat-nav pedigree, don’t expect on-screen turn-by-turn navigation. Instead, the watch simply traces your journey and by using the built-in compass you can follow it safely home again. When compared with a chest strap on a competitor device, the Spark 3 held its own. Heart rate was accurate, but I did notice a little lag when out. Doing hill runs, for example, meant spikes in heart rate that the watch struggled to display immediately. While not offering as much at-a-glance detail as the elite Garmin Forerunner 935 for instance, information is clearly displayed and, crucially, easy to read when running. That feature is cool, but if you’re after more structured training programmes, Garmin or Polar watches offer more than the TomTom Spark 3. So with my favourite truly wireless buds, the only option is to have the volume at maximum, ruling them out. In fairness, it’s not a problem if you use the bundled headphones that come with the TomTom Spark 3 Cardio + Music bundle, but it’s worth keeping in mind if you already have your own favourite running headphones.

The watch isn’t touch-screen, so you interact with it using a four-direction button under the face. Each direction pushes you into a different feature — Up turns on bluetooth and controls music, Left shows you your day’s fitness readings (such as number of steps), Down goes to settings and Right starts your workout. The Spark 3 is also an excellent ally in the pool. Once you’ve set the length of the pool, the Spark 3 will tally lengths, strokes, strokes per minute, total distance and calories.

With a built-in heart-rate monitor and storage for music, the TomTom Spark 3 Cardio + Music is the best GPS watch for those who want to track their heart rates and listen to music while working out.

It’s still a bit short of the presentation and capabilities offered by other apps, though. It partners with the likes of Strava, Nike+ and Runkeeper, so most users will probably prefer to dive into the details of their activity there, rather than on the TomTom Sports app.

The four-way navigation system will take time to get used to, and finding a feature can sometimes feel like an endless game of Snake; up-left-down-down-left-right. However, with the Spark 3, TomTom isn’t going after the smartwatch market, but rather staying focused on being a GPS watch. As such, the inclusion of a built-in music player and Bluetooth headphone connectivity means that there’s no need to take out a phone with you when you’re training. TomTom Spark 3 – Battery Life and Charging The TomTom Spark 3 is, as the name suggests, the third-generation GPS running watch from maps and satnav specialist, TomTom. It’s a headline grabbing list of features for any sports watch, but has TomTom done enough to tempt both first-timers and fully fledged fitness freaks away from brands like Garmin and Polar? DesignThen there are the many different modes you can use to guide your run. You can plan interval sessions, or set the Spark 3 to buzz every time you stop running at a certain pace or exit a given heart rate zone. For treadmill training, the Spark is pretty good at matching the totals you’ll see on the equipment and you can adjust distance easily afterwards. It offers most of the same workout options as when outdoors, so you can set up interval sessions and the like in the warmth of a gym come winter time. TomTom says you should be able to get a good five hours of GPS, HR and music on the go. Alternatively, using GPS, the watch should last for around 11 hours on a charge.

All that said, the app is clean, easy to use and works well for the sports for which it is tailored.If you’re upgrading from a running app, or this is your first fitness watch, you might find the number of options a bit daunting. For a sports watch, the Spark’s design is pleasingly unobtrusive, especially compared with the slightly more outlandish offerings you see from its main rivals, Garmin and Polar. As such, you can pretty much wear it anywhere without looking like you’re about to shed your suit and sprint off. Should I consider buying something else? Once home,you can review all the details in the TomTom Sports App or export the data to your favourite apps like Strava or Runkeeper, which you’ll probably want to, because the TomTom app isn’t quite up to those standards just yet. All supported activities, including cycling, gym workouts, indoor and outdoor runs, and swimming, have their own menus where you can customize goals and settings. For example, you can adjust your bike's wheel size or the size of a swimming pool. You can also use the watch as a stopwatch, set up and view heart rate zones to stay in, and race against previous times. Unfortunately, you still have to start a new session and then press the up button to view your stats on the watch.