dabodin

I want to buy one to log the incredible mileage I intend to rack up while there in September. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good brand? What is the price range? Any features to look for? I don't know the first thing about them.

Thanks.

TexasAggie

You can buy upscale models with all sorts of features at any sporting goods store, or you can buy a cheap but still functional model for less than $5 at Wal-Mart.

PalQ

But them before leaving - my pedometer last trip didn't last long as when i got off the shuttle bus from terminal 1 at Paris CDG airport it tumbled off my belt and fell directly under the bus tires - the bus moved forward and my pedometer was pancaked - i still have it as a souvenir - but just couldn't find one in France or Holland - only looked in few Dunham's like sporting goods store - Perry Sports in A'dam but didn't have any a'tal - if they did they'd be in kilometres. Like Texas A&M says any cheap model will suffice for your purposes.

aggiemom

Hi dabodin - I've been using Sportline pedometers for the last few years (all I can seem to get here!).

The most expensive ones I get are about 19.99 or 24.99. They are more accurate and some have a sensitivity adjustment. I found the cheaper ones (10.99 or less) really don't keep track very well and tend to add too much mileage or not enough if you do a lot of short, odd "moves" (say, as in emptying the dishwasher, putting dishes away, stair climbing - yes I wear it all the time!)

They tend to last me about a year - I seem to break the spring loaded clip or drop them on the floor or in the toilet!

Patrick

Interesting information for future use. I've tucked it away in my "pedo" file.

Christina

I bought one of those cheap Sportline models at Targe (around $5-10), and it never even worked, not even the first day. It was just completely nonfunctional. Unfortunatley, I had thrown away the receipt so couldn't get a refund. I think bought a better model and like it very much -- the Omron model HJ-112. It cost more but was definitely worth it. It still wasn't that much, I think I paid about $20 for it at Walmart, which had the cheapest price on it. I read a lot of reviews of pedometers on about.com or somewhere, and they recommended the Omron as really good. They also had some acceptable reviews for Sportline, but from my experience, that was throwing my money away.

I don't know how well these would really work for varied kind of walking all day, in terms of being accurate. You have to measure your pace and program that into it, and I walk very differently if I'm just ambling about than if I am doing a serious walk for exercise, which is the main reason I use it.

The Omron model I got is nice in that it can be on your belt, or even in a pocket, and still works pretty well.

Christina

This is the online article I read about pedometers, with information and reviews. It helped me a lot:

http://walking.about.com/cs/measure/tp/pedometer.htm

Patrick

OK, I guess it wasn't as funny as I thought it was.

sarahkay

The thing you have to get right with Pedometers is the length of your stride as all it counts is the number of paces you take. I originally had one that sits on a belt, but because I had my stride length set up 'under' it seemed that I wasn't walking as far as I had. I now use a GPS which is obviously more expensive, but you can pick up older models from e-bay (sorry not sure how much this would be in US). You just need a bog standard version to tell you exactly how far you've walked, what your fastest/average time was etc. If you do any walking at home this might be a useful addition to your walking kit.

dabodin

Wow! Thanks to everybody who threw in their two cents. Really, really helpful.

And Patrick, I did chuckle about your pedo-file joke - very clever, but maybe a little too ped-antic for female Fodorites,,,,,,

usbeauty

This is the one I just bought, recommended by several ped-iatrics:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...n&n=507846

aggiemom

Patrick - Duh on me! I didn't "get" that pedo-file joke. (I thought you were seriously interested and actually had a file on this stuff - silly me!)
I must have read this way too early in the morning without proper amounts of caffeine.

Funny!

Robespierre

Okay, I got it the first time. I didn't say anything for risk of encouraging the perp.

tcreath

Just go to any sports store (Sports Authority, REI, etc.) or Target. You should be able to find them. I have several and they all were fairly inexpensive.

Tracy

dabodin

I just wanted to follow up on this thread. I bought the Omron model that was highly recommended, and it is truly fantastic. I love everything about it, including the good deal I got on Wal-Mart's website (they don't stock it in the one Wal-Mart store I went to). I paid $19 when it was anywhere from $25 to $35 on other sites. I hate Wal-Mart and swore I'd never buy anything from them, but I weakened due to self-interest. Anyway, thanks to all who helped me find this pedometer!

m_kingdom2

You want the best pedometer you can buy. I've used cheap ones, the sort that click - useless and they have to be positioned pretty specifically to be accurate in the slightest. I believe that I use an OMRON which costs 30GBP (so 55 or so USD I'd guess). It's very useful, and one aims to walk 10000 steps each day. Today I did 22000 (around 13 miles) and it really is much more fun than going to a gym.

Christina

dabodin, I did the same thing -- bought the Omron from the Walmart website because they really did have an excellent price and I couldn't even find it in stock in any normal store around me. So, I hate them also (sort of, we don't really have one near me so I don't have a lot of experience with them), but I bought it from the website and it was a great deal.