iTreadmill

I'll be honest...I've tried a few pedometer apps for the iPhone, so when iTreadmill came across my home screen I was skeptical. iTreadmill claims to be one of the more accurate pedometer apps on the market and from the results I was pleasantly surprised. iTreadmill boasts a wide variety of extra features and doodads that really make this app shine above the rest.

The Good
Upon opening iTreadmill, I was greeted by the phrase, "Exercise Anywhere. Anytime." Granted, I'm not a huge fan of aerobics, walking, or anything involving moving. I'm not a generally lazy person, but 116 degree heat really deters the desire to test this app, but I did manage to find a very good testing ground: my daily walk to the office.

Every day, I park my car at Lot 3 and walk to my dayjob. This trek requires me to walk around a YMCA, across a park, and slightly up the street to my destination. I started off by clicking the big play button in the middle of the screen. I was instantly greeted with a clicking metronome of sorts, also known as the pacer. You can use the wheel on the right side of the screen to set exactly how fast you want to go. For the purposes of my initial test I turned it off. Neat feature #1

I continued on my morning walk until I reached a roadblock in my commute (quite literally). I took a quick look down at my device to notice that the app had auto-paused when I stopped walking. Yet another neat feature. As I was placing my iPhone back in my pocket, it slipped slightly in my hand and I feared that I had accidentally pushed the play button as ruined my test. Turns out KaDa Technologies already solved my issue before it happened; proximity sensor functionality. It just keeps getting better!

After counting my steps the entire way, I found that iTreadmill was only inaccurate by about 10 steps. Far better than any other pedometer app that I have tried. I used it the rest of the day as I fulfilled my various tech jobs around the building and I was quite impressed. I read through the user manual on the website and found a calibration button in the top right corner above the pacer wheel. After calibrating, I saw a slight difference in accuracy, but not enough to notice.

After saving all of your walks or runs, the history screen shows you all of the recorded times, calories burned, and distance traveled in one convenient place. After using it for several days I am convinced that this is one of the best pedometer apps on the market and could probably hold its own in competition with traditional standalone units.

My favorite part about this app is the sounds. Straight out of an 8-bit video game, every sound associated with this app makes me want to pretend that I've stepped into the Mushroom Kingdom. Of course, if you prefer a more silent routine there are option to turn the sounds off.

The Not-So-Good
This app would be wonderful if a few things were tweaked in the future versions:

First, the app is slightly cluttered. I think that the same functionality could be implemented in a much more appealing package. I know it's vain but I think that would boost its usability a touch more.

Second, I would love widescreen view. If you have one of those spiffy hip-mounted holsters for the iPhone or iPod touch, it could be a bit of a hassle to pull the unit out just to see your status.

Third, if this app had more organization in the history I would be a very happy man. There were a couple times where I wish that I could save multiple instance under one workout or work day instead of seeing my cumulative score.

My Verdict
This is a solid pedometer. It tracks, it pauses, and it plays funny noises that amuse me. Its not the prettiest app in the App Store, but it works and that's what matters. I would have no reservation plopping down $3 for what this app does, especially if you have been searching for an app such as this one. Go buy this app, test it for yourself, and get out and do something (you know its good for you).

Pros
- Easy to use
- Auto-pause
- Proximity sensor use
- Freaking awesome sounds!

Cons
- Interface could use a facelift
- Needs more "History" functionality
- Widescreen support would be nice

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