Earlier this month, fitness app Strava said it would be just a “few more weeks” wait for the company to bring standalone support for Apple Watch Series 2. Today, the company quietly released the update, as its update change log does not note Series 2 support.
What does this mean for Apple Watch Series 2 owners? Strava can now utilize the GPS in the watch, so you can go for a run or bike ride, without the need for your iPhone. Previously, the app required your iPhone for it to track your run or rides.
The standalone Series 2 update is pretty simple. Settings allows you to switch between runs or rides with a tap, while the same goes for units (so you can switch to kilometres as its default is miles). Auto-pause settings are available for run and ride as well (it’s off by default for runs by the way).
While recording, you’ll see your elapsed time, speed, pace and heart rate.
Previously, standalone GPS support was only for a few apps, with Nike Run Club being one of them. Apple’s workouts cannot be written to Strava, which made it a real pain to record fitness data to the app.
We will try to put this to the test tomorrow on a run or ride, and see how Strava on Apple Watch Series 2 compares with our Garmin Forerunner 920XT.
Strava’s Head of Integration, Mateo Ortega, told SlashGear:
Research and athlete feedback often drives new Strava features and integrations. We’re excited to add to our growing list of compatible devices, and see this as the first step in providing our athletes an excellent Strava experience on the Apple Watch Series 2. Our athletes can look forward to continued updates as we strive to provide the best Watch experience possible.
Click here to download Strava for iOS in the App Store.
