The Best New Gear for 2008

The Sports Watch of My Dreams

I am really into numbers. I took Calculus 3 in high school. I scored much higher on the math section of the SATs than on the verbal section. I write down my expenses to the cent, adding and subtracting in my checkbook with glee. I'm still not quite sure how I managed to become a magazine editor, but I did! And while I love my job, I definitely find it lacking in the number department. The most I get to deal with is word counts...not that exciting. But this watch from Polar fulfills my every numerical dream.

You wear the RS800 watch on your wrist, a heart-rate transmitter on your chest, and a GPS sensor somewhere else (like on your arm or in your backpack). Then exercise, and everything talks to the watch! Want to know your speed? Check. How far you've gone? Check. What zone your heart-rate is in? Check. This thing uses GPS (the same technology that tells you to turn left at the next street to get home) to configure all sorts of data you never knew you needed to know. It also comes with a computer program so you can download the data and see graphs (graphs!), and come up with specific workouts and training programs.

$499.95, www.polarusa.com