AllSport GPS for iPhone Excels for Multi-sport Athletes

I've tried many sports and fitness applications for smartphones, and Trimble's AllSport GPS has always been among the best. Trimble recently released AllSport for the iPhone ($9.99), and I used it for more than 300 miles of cycling and running for this review. AllSport for iPhone is an easy-to-use app for cyclists, runners, walkers, hikers, and skiers that boasts a robust feature set and the ability to store routes and stats. You may store sessions on the iPhone and upload them to TrimbleOutdoors, where you can take advantage of route planning, sharing, and cumulative stats features.

In this age of specialized apps, I was initially skeptical that AllSport GPS could successfully serve the needs of road and mountain cyclists, hikers, runners, walkers, and skiers. On the other hand, I do "all of the above" sports (except for fitness walking), so the idea of do-it-all app is very attractive.

When you think about it, the sports' GPS needs are similar, including time, distance, various speed metrics, elevation change, calorie burn, and integrated multi-view mapping.

Within the AllSport GPS app, every sport's main screen includes a large "distance" display, and smaller blocks for total time, rest time, elevation change, speed, average speed and calorie burn. These read out in real time as you do the activity. Use a protective cover if you wish to view the iPhone display while you participate in your sport (iPhones are not water-resistant). There are handlebar mounts available for the iPhone, but I don't want to subject mine to road and trail vibration, so I keep it stowed in a case or plastic bag in a jersey pocket.

When you're finished with your workout, simply save it to your iPhone (it's easy to access previous workout records via the "my sessions" screen). Once stored, you may sort and access previous workouts by trip name, date, distance, and more. If you wish, you may also wirelessly upload the session to Trimble Outdoors, where you can create trips, look at cumulative stats, share trips with others, and download and save others' trips to your iPhone. It's all very nicely integrated.

I found AllSport GPS for iPhone to be accurate in comparison with other GPS devices, and able to hold a GPS fix well in varying conditions. The iPhone's GPS isn't as capable as that of dedicated GPS devices in challenging terrain, such as dense forest. Overall though, AllSport GPS is a terrific app for the multi-sport athlete.