Exercise in Utility

A workout-friendly iPod remote that also tells time

August 23, 2007—Music-loving runners (or exercise-tolerating music fans) know that making iPod adjustments while in action can require some uncomfortable contortions. Happily, a solution has just hit the market. Timex's new iControl Ironman is, unbelievably, the first combination wristwatch and iPod remote. The setup is straightforward: Plug the stamp-sized receiver (by iPod accessory experts Belkin) into your iPod's docking port, and use the watch's easily accessible buttons to adjust volume and to play, pause, skip, and reverse through tracks—all while your music device is safely tucked away. (The iControl is compatible with fifth-generation iPods, Nanos, and, yes, the iPhone.) Timex has high hopes for the model. "Seventy-six percent of iPod users exercise," says Timex product manager Adriana Espinosa. "This watch lets them keep stride." Indeed—there's nothing worse than hitting the home stretch and realizing you don't have "Eye of the Tiger" pumping at full volume.

The Timex iControl Watch, $125, keepon.timex.com/icontrol