Apple’s GymKit technology, the new Apple Watch implementation on commercial cardio machines, has started to roll out in Australia and is expected to soon follow in the U.S.
Since announcing an update for Apple Watch in June, Apple has been working with the world’s biggest equipment machine manufacturers to enable seamless sharing of user biometric and workout data between its watch and compatible treadmills, bikes, stair steppers and ellipticals.
Among the companies involved are Technogym and Life Fitness, among the biggest makers of such equipment in the world, as well as Matrix, StairMaster and Schwinn.
Four fitness clubs in Australia began to launch the integration with Technogym machines last week: Bond Street Platinum, Bondi Platinum and Barangaroo Titanium, all in Sydney, as well as Richmond Platinum in Melbourne, according to Australian gym operator Fitness First.
Life Fitness and Techogym were not able to immediately respond to a request for comment regarding when this functionality would become available in the U.S., however both said earlier this year that the implementation would begin late in 2017.
GymKit enables fitness equipment to share user data via Near Field Communication (NFC) chips, the same technology that powers the contactless payment service Apple Pay.
When users tap their Apple Watch to the machine, a connection is established between the two that enables the machine to exchange information about distance, speed and incline, while the watch reciprocates with information about the user’s height, weight, heart rate and calories.
The watch automatically stops the workout when the user presses pause on the machine. At the end of the workout, exercise statistics are stored on the iOS Activity app and personal user data is wiped from the machine.
