Review: Joggah v1.0

Admittedly I avoid exercise like the plague but software developer Subsembly GmbH has a Windows Mobile application that might make jogging a little more attractive. Joggah is a running log book, timer, distance calculator, and shoe mileage calculator.

Granted it's unlikely to get me training for a marathon, if jogging, walking or hiking is your cup of tea, Joggah might be worth a look. It'll even help you keep track of how many miles your shoes have on them. Follow the break to see how well Joggah can keep pace things.

Joggah will only run on a Windows Mobile Professional device (a.k.a. with a touch screen) and installation was no different that any other WinMo app installation.

I was pleasantly surprised to find Joggah very feature rich. More so than I expected from a exercise tracking application. Joggah's key features include:

Setting up Joggah was simple. The settings menu allows you to choose English or Metric displays as well as entering your personal data. Only drawback is that weight is entered in kilograms not pounds. It is flattering to see that I only weigh 90 kilograms but when your used to English measurements, it'd be nice to be able to enter weight in pounds.

Joggah has four main screens that are navigable by a menu bar that rests at the bottom of the screen. The first screen shows the Activity Class or level your performing at and a customizable background picture.

You have the log screen that will display summaries of each of your exercise sessions. Tap on the individual entry and it pulls up a detailed account of the run. This is a very detailed account of your run from the elapsed time to distance traveled to your average speed. If you have the means to determine calories burned you can enter and track that information as well.  Information can be entered manually but if your phone has a GPS unit, Joggah can help make entering the data easier.

Your Windows Mobile phone's GPS can be integrated with Joggah and automatically enter most of this information. When you enter the timer screen (more in a second on that) Joggah looks for a GPS signal. Keep in mind that it may take a minute to acquire a GPS fix from a cold start. When the GPS signal is fixed, a red indicator light turns green and your good to go.

The only quirk I could find in using the GPS is that at times, I'd be standing still but the speed indicator read that I was still moving. This could be a simple matter of lag time with the GPS or some other software anomaly.

Ever wonder how many miles you've logged on a pair of shoes? Joggah will let you identify a particular pair of shoes in the running log and track the data specific to that pair of shoes.

The timer screen is well laid out and will show your elapsed time, distance and speed. It will also display your GPS coordinates. The timer can be paused and when you press "stop" the options to save track, do not save, add to log or continue recording appear. When your done with the exercise session, tapping "add to log" transfers the data to your running log.

The one icon on the menu bar that has yet to be mentioned is the padlock.  Tapping it will lock the application to prevent accidentally tapping the stop or pause buttons during exercise.  The lock only applies to the application as opposed to the screen itself.  You'll still be able to answer calls and access other applications on your phone.

If I were a runner, walker or hiker I would be hard pressed to ignore Joggah. The application ran smoothly on my AT&T Fuze cooked with Windows Mobile 6.5 and it was difficult to find anything wrong with Joggah.

Joggah maintains a very detailed log that can be exported and opened in Microsoft Excel and GPS integration makes log entry a snap (or tap?).

I had to question running around with my AT&T Fuze clipped to my hip but I imagine with the right case, it shouldn't be a problem.  If you need a Windows Mobile application to help log your running, walking or hiking activities Joggah is definitely worth a try. If you're not sure, a 30 day trial is available over at the WMExperts Software Store.