Casio has just announced a new entry in its Pro Trek series, catchily called the Casio Pro Trek WSD-F21HR, and that name might give you a hint at its headline feature. Still struggling? It’s a heart rate monitor.
Surprisingly, other entries in the range such as the Casio Pro Trek WSD-F30 and the Casio Pro Trek Smart WSD-F20 don’t have a heart rate monitor, so this makes for a substantial upgrade – even if it’s an upgrade that many other smartwatches and fitness trackers already offer.
The Casio Pro Trek WSD-F21HR uses an optical heart rate sensor which can express its readings as one of five heart rate zones. The WSD-F21HR also has a Heart Rate watch face, which allows the wearable to automatically switch to the heart rate monitor screen when it detects motion.
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While heart rate tracking might have been a long time coming, coupled with the rest of what the Casio Pro Trek WSD-F21HR offers it should make for a full-featured smartwatch.
The wearable additionally sports GPS, offline maps, and detailed activity tracking, including for running and trail running.
Plus, the Casio Pro Trek WSD-F21HR is water-resistant to depths of 50 meters, and it has a dual-layer screen, allowing you to switch to a low-power display when you don’t need all the smart functions.
The watch runs Wear OS, so it has access to a wide range of apps, and it’s set to cost $499 (around £410 / AU$735) when it hits stores in September.
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