NB RunIQ review

The first ‘proper’ Strava watch disappoints more than it impresses - an unremarkable Android Wear watch but GPS is a plus.

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The New Balance RunIQ is an Android Wear-powered smartwatch for runners, but it's big, heavy, and doesn't offer significant advantages over a dedicated running watch.

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While the New Balance name, one synonymous with running, might lead you to believe this will be a watch that runners would love, the RunIQ is incredibly disappointing. It’s a solidly constructed running watch, yes, with a design that doesn’t exactly break the mould but also doesn’t offend the eye.

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The long and short of the RunIQ is that it's not a bad bash at a fitness watch, but it's a bit too plain to be an everyday watch. There's nothing remarkable or anything that truly stands out about it. We wouldn't choose it as our go-to fitness watch or our go-to smartwatch, which leaves it in something of a grey area.

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On paper, the New Balance RunIQ is a sporty Android Wear smartwatch that has it all. An attractive and not-too-chunky design, Strava integration, built-in GPS and heart rate sensor. In reality, it feels like a missed opportunity for New Balance. Granted, elements of the RunIQ impress, such as Strava support, but among other things it's let down by the heart rate sensor and battery performance that would put off any runner or cyclist that takes tracking seriously.

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Android Wear watches are becoming more autonomous, and that’s great news if you like the idea of a smartwatch that works as a proper, marathon-tracking sport watch. The New Balance RunIQ is all up for the standalone concept, but is too dated in other respects to pull it off. Wear watches simply can’t launch with pre-2.0 versions of the software anymore, and the difference is compounded by oddly wonky performance here. We’re likely to see several better takes on this concept in 2017. But if exercise tracking is your real goal, a dedicated runner’s watch is still a better idea.

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The RunIQ is branded as an “innovative collaboration” among Android Wear, computer chipmaker Intel, and Strava, but it falls far short of those high expectations. It offers the same standard smartwatch features as the Polar M600 and the Moto 360 Sport, only with a more confusing user experience and inexplicably poor running features.

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The New Balance Run IQ is a valiant attempt at bringing the features of a GPS watch and a smart watch together, but in our eyes, it falls short. While it's accurate and has many great smart watch features, that it requires two apps to see your exercise statistics, and that it lacks training features including interval training and racing yourself, negatively impacts the experience.

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While I eventually enjoyed using the RunIQ-Strava-connected app on the watch, I wish New Balance had taken the time to design its own exercise tracking and analysis app. I would only recommend the RunIQ watch to someone who wants a running-friendly Android Wear device now and doesn't need the cellular connectivity found in the LG Watch Sport. Ideally, consumers should wait a few months to see if a better Android Wear watch for running comes out. Or they should at least wait long enough to see if the best features of Google Fit will make it into this smartwatch.

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