Apps New version of WorkOutDoors, the Workout app with a Map

[cfc]

Version 2.0 of WorkOutDoors is now available, with even better maps and many more workout features. It has been updated to make the most of watchOS 4 and to be compatible with Watch Series 3 and iPhone X.

The map rendering engine has been built especially for the app. It uses vectors to give the same smooth zooming and panning experience as Apple's Maps app, but with clearer maps that show paths and cycle trails. It can also auto-rotate according to your direction of travel; shows a breadcrumb trail of your route; and displays a useful circular scale when you smoothly zoom in or out.

The app includes maps for the whole world (no additional payments are required for anything) and users can select areas to be cached on the watch for use offline.

The map rendering is highly efficient. It is perfectly usable on a Series 0 watch, and really flies on a Series 3. The map is updated almost instantly when you raise your wrist, and smoothly pans and rotates as you move.

When running on watchOS 4 the map can now use the full-screen, which was not possible with watchOS 3. There is also a new option that allows you to see a full-screen map without starting a workout.

The workout statistics can now be displayed in 3 different text sizes, and several more categories are available for display. You can now display steps, air pressure and elevation (absolute or relative) in addition to the existing options of distance, time, heartrate, calories, speed and pace. Double tap a stat to cycle through the possible categories.

If you want a full-screen map then simply double tap the map to hide the stats (and double tap it again to show them again).

You can call up a screen of detailed information at any time during the workout, including maps with coloured trails indicating the speed, elevation and heart rate. These maps are now larger thanks to the ability to use the full screen.

If you tap a POI or road name then the full name (and type for POIs) will be shown at the bottom of the screen. In the new version the POI or road name will now also temporarily enlarge on the map, so that you can see it more clearly.

GPX routes can be imported and displayed on the map. The route is shown in shades of purple to indicate gradient (red for uphill, blue for downhill), and you can choose to display a route as "hollow" so that you can see the trails/roads underneath.

The new version also displays arrows to show the direction of the route, and allows you to reverse the route if you wish. It also now displays icons for the waypoints included in the GPX file. If the waypoint contains a description then tapping the icon will display a screen of text with the waypoint name and the description.

The new version has an improved GPS signal strength meter, which takes up less room and can be configured to display either bars or a signal accuracy in metres. The meter is shown even before you start a workout, so you can wait until you get a good signal before starting.

The new version has lots of extra features available by tapping and double tapping elements on the screen. Tap the red compass to toggle auto-rotation on and off. Tap the green "start" compass to see the distance back to the start. Tap the GPS dot/arrow to cycle through location information (lat/long, elevation, and OS Grid in the UK). Tap the clock to see the full time with seconds.

You can also show or hide the compasses or the GPS signal by double-tapping them.

In order to help you remember all these "hidden" operations the app now shows hints that describe a function that you have not yet used.

The iPhone app has also been improved. Workouts are now given more meaningful default names (e.g. "Monday Morning Run"). Also GPX files can now be exported to many more destinations and you can now configure exactly which fields are included. This includes elevation, heartrate, cadence and now also GPS accuracy. This accuracy is also an option when displaying a map and profile of the workout, along with the existing options of speed, elevation, heartrate, and cadence.

The new version of the app uses map tiles which are 4x larger than before. This means improved map rendering and also the ability to transfer larger areas of the map to the watch in one go. The transfers are also much faster because the app now batches them rather than sending individual map tiles.

The new version also includes other improvements made available by watchOS 4 and the Watch Series 3:

- workout routes are now saved to the Health app;
- workouts can be paused or resumed by pressing both side buttons at the same time;
- it now uses the barometric sensor on Watch Series 3 for elevation and air pressure;
- it uses LTE Watch cellular data when necessary (no iPhone and no cached maps);

If you haven't tried the app then please give it a go. If you have tried it then many thanks for buying it, and please let me know what you think of the new version.

 

[dallison13]

I can confirm that this APP is amazing. So many things that users on these forums, Strava Forums, and others have asked for, delivered into a tidy package. This is your Garmin watch folks. I was a beta user and the developer responded to all of my inquiries, suggestions and more. This is what happens when a developer has a platform to work on and responds accordingly. REWARD him by buying and promoting this app.

Kudos @cfc for your hard work!

 

[CobraPA]

Wow, @cfc, great update! Looking forward to checking it out.

 

[pnerd]

Wow, that's a very nice writeup of the new release. @cfc, can you elaborate further on the relative performance of the the 3 different watch silicon generations? Since you are paying attention to rendering performance, your perspective would be interesting. Also would be interested in any observations of watchOS 4.1. I have noticed that launches of simple apps like settings, stopwatch, alarm, etc are done in just under 2 seconds whereas it was around 4 seconds on watchOS 4.0 and prior. Those numbers are on a Series 2 and tested after a reboot and waiting for 10 minutes or so for the OS to settle down. I have noticed a proportionate improvement on Series 0 silicon as well, with simple apps launching in around 4 seconds. Apparently there was some sort of OS/toolkit bottleneck that has been found. It was always very strange that even on Series 0, interactive performance was reasonable but anything involving launching or i/o was horribly slow.

Are there any videos of this new release available online? I don't really need this functionality but am tempted to buy it anyways.

 

[michaelb5000]

I bought the app because I like maps and using GPS with maps and have been doing that for a long time (before the iphone). I agree that that maps here look nice and scroll and zoom nicely, so that part works. In the previous version, it seemed like at times I would walk off the end of the map tile so out into blank space (eventually the map would fill in that missing tile). You may need more documentation or help, since I learned stuff here I didn't know and hadn't seen. the app had quit a couple of times as I zoomed in and out looking at the map.

I definitely like the Map only option, since for my use, I mainly want mapping when I am going far enough to matter, so a hike or ski or day long ride, and for those purposes, battery life is critical and don't want to burn through that using a workout mode with HR monitoring. For the map only mode, I assume the GPS is running, but the HR is not? Once you start the Map only mode, you have to stop it, so your watch will return to the map until you turn that off.

There is a lot of detail on the map, what map are you using (openstreet map?). There are green dotted lines along a lot of roads and seemingly random POIs. I think your maps look pretty good (and better that Apple's on the watch for sure), my issue with any map app on my watch is that it is hard to read any details, like street names. That may be my eyes, but zooming in doesn't really increase the font size of roads for example (again, not sure you can or should try to address that).

 

[cfc]

can you elaborate further on the relative performance of the the 3 different watch silicon generations?

I haven't done any detailed analysis of the different generations beyond noting that Apple have made great leaps forward each time. For my app the main area that it makes a difference is in rendering the map tiles when raising your wrist or changing the area viewed by scrolling or panning. When the map tile has been rendered then it can be panned or rotated very smoothly even on the Series 0. But despite this the app is very usable on the Series 0 (as noted in a couple of reviews of the app on the App Store). It just takes a couple of seconds to draw the map on raising your wrist, rather than well under a second on the Series 3. And if you have recently looked at the watch then the required map tiles could still be displayed anyway and just need moving around, which is practically instant.

To help minimise the slower rendering on the Series 0 I prioritise different map elements. Roads and paths are drawn first for all visible tiles, then landuse, then buildings, then outlines of elements to make them clearer, and finally POIs and road names. This means that even on the Series 0 you see the important stuff ASAP. It is even better with the new release because the tiles are larger and are therefore drawn less frequently.

The ability to cache an area of the map also comes in useful for drawing performance. If the map is cached then it doesn't need to wait for the data to be downloaded before it can draw it. It is pretty quick to download anyway, but every split-second counts on the watch.

Are there any videos of this new release available online?

There is a video of the old release at the bottom of the main website page (www.workoutdoors.net), but I haven't created one for the new release yet. The old video looks very out-of-date now that the maps are full-screen, which is why I started this new thread with new screenshots for this release.

I don't really need this functionality but am tempted to buy it anyways.

The app has a map-only mode for when you don't want to start a workout. It shows map elements and provides features not available in the Apple Maps app, so you might still find it useful...
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In the previous version, it seemed like at times I would walk off the end of the map tile so out into blank space (eventually the map would fill in that missing tile). You may need more documentation or help, since I learned stuff here I didn't know and hadn't seen. the app had quit a couple of times as I zoomed in and out looking at the map.

These are two bugs that have been fixed in the new version. There was a timing issue that caused an occasional missing tile, and there was a bug where it would sometimes crash when drawing an aerialway, but both are now fixed. Out of interest did you find that it crashed when near aerialways such as cable cars or gondolas? I notice that you mention skiing. In any case both of these bugs are now fixed thanks to some very dedicated people who have been kindly beta testing the app for me.

In terms of documentation there is a website (www.workoutdoors.net), which can be displayed in the iPhone app, but I agree that there are loads of "hidden" features that you probably wouldn't know about unless you tried tapping everything (which is actually a good way to learn!). It is especially difficult to make every feature obvious on the watch, which doesn't have the room to display labelled buttons.

I have tried to address this with "hints" in the latest version. When you save a workout it shows a "Saving Workout" message for a few seconds, and this message now describes a "hidden" feature that the user hasn't yet tried. For example the first hint is to tap the red compass to turn auto-rotation on or off. When the user has done that then a different hint will be shown next time until they have used all the less obvious features. The idea is that it sort of makes a game out of the learning process by encouraging the user to try a feature so they can move on to the next hint. I don't know if it will work but it seemed worth a try!

I definitely like the Map only option, since for my use, I mainly want mapping when I am going far enough to matter, so a hike or ski or day long ride, and for those purposes, battery life is critical and don't want to burn through that using a workout mode with HR monitoring. For the map only mode, I assume the GPS is running, but the HR is not? Once you start the Map only mode, you have to stop it, so your watch will return to the map until you turn that off.

The Map-Only mode will only use GPS and not use any workout features. The HR sensor may still operate occasionally because it does that all the time, but not with the frequency that it operates during a workout.

You can control how long the app will use the GPS for in Map-Only mode. The default is 15 minutes, so if you use the app again within 15 minutes then you will see a trail of your route. If you don't use the app again within 15 minutes then the GPS is switched off and will only be switched on again when you next use the app. This period can be set to between 0 minutes (switched off immediately you stop using the app) up to 180 minutes.

Did you know there is also a Workout Power Saving Mode on iOS11? If you go to the Watch app on the iPhone and then select General then you will see the option. It mentions not using the HR sensor for running and walking workouts (I'm not sure why it doesn't apply to other workouts).

There is a lot of detail on the map, what map are you using (openstreet map?). There are green dotted lines along a lot of roads and seemingly random POIs

I use OpenStreetMap via a company called Mapzen, who supply the data in vector and point format. I can then draw the map however I want, so the colour scheme is my fault! The green dashed lines are paths, brown dashed lines are tracks, purple dashed lines are cycle trails (with arrow-shaped dashes if they are one-way) and white dashed lines are paved tracks. Roads are solid lines of various colours. I guess I should add a map key to show this stuff!

I think your maps look pretty good (and better that Apple's on the watch for sure), my issue with any map app on my watch is that it is hard to read any details, like street names. That may be my eyes, but zooming in doesn't really increase the font size of roads for example (again, not sure you can or should try to address that).

As you say it is hard to pick a font size that is readable by everyone. I have tried to help get around this in the latest version by magnifying an element when it is selected. So if you tap a POI or road name then it enlarges for a few seconds. It also shows the name and type of the POI/road in a more readable font at the bottom of the screen.

This is demonstrated by the 3 very similar screenshots about halfway down my original post. They show the same scene but I have selected different items in each. In the first one I have tapped a road labelled "Manor" and the name has magnified and the full road name "Manor Court" is shown at the bottom of the screen. In the second one I have tapped "The Old Anchor Inn", which has caused it to enlarge and the name and type (unsurprisingly a "pub") is shown at the bottom of the screen. Similarly with "Wilsham Road", which was particularly difficult to see because of the orientation, but becomes clearer when magnified. Hopefully this ability to select an item will help with text visibility.

 

[redsteeler]

This is indeed most promising app for sport enthusiasts since AW come. Altrought i m more runner and i use other apps at the moment because of voice added functions i m confident that workoutdoors app will soon have implemented voice functions too

 

[alunjunkinsuk]

cant recommend this app enough. The latest version is super. Everything I need is there now. Perhaps the only wishes now would be to connect to BLE devices such as Cadence and power meters

 

[mck88]

Not an outdoor runner (yet!) but bought this app because feature set is great and its wonderful to see the developer active on this forum and very responsive to feedback. Way to go!

I'm looking forward to using the app soon. Thanks for all the efforts put into it.

 

[shambolic]

Very encouraged by this app. Runners (not that the app is solely for us) are a demanding bunch and if you have a developer who's willing to listen to the community and build in the features that matter to us, that has to be worth the proverbial cup of coffee that the app costs.

I'm personally loving:
- Cadence that works! First app I've used to date that gets this right (built-in Workouts app exported via RunGap gives me garbage for the first mile or two of every run).
- Compass oriented to direction of movement: I loaded up a GPX route and took the app out on twisty wooded trails this morning and this feature allowed me to follow the route perfectly even with the quickest of glimpses at the screen (which is all I can afford with rocky rooted trails), no having to think about which way the screen is oriented.

I've found one or two minor glitches but that's expected in any x.0 release and cfc is already looking into them. Highly recommend everyone give this app a try.

 

[Midway123]

Bought the app as well, looks great!! Like redsteeler said, voice functions that would be great for running (not having to look at your watch, but be briefed through audio). If you can have the displayed (or selectable) metrics read out to you at fixed intervals (Distance or Time) that would be great. btw. do not forget to include HR in that, you would be one of the few doing that...

Keep up the good work, it feels like finally "one of us" is making a great app, rather than an anonymous big company...Great

 

[cfc]

Many thanks for all the kind words and suggestions. The response has been fantastic. The app only averages about 5 sales a day, but I usually get feedback from 1 or 2 new users each day, which is a far higher ratio than I have ever had for previous apps. It's great that people take the time to tell me how they use the app, and to describe the features that they would like to see added to it.

I am currently deciding what functionality to add into the next version. So if there is a particular feature that you want added then please let me know on this thread, or by PM, or by email from the app. There is a quick email button on the "Help & Info" tab of the iPhone app.

Thanks again for all the feedback. It is very much appreciated!

 

[cfc]

I have released a new version of the app with minor improvements and bug fixes. There is a major new version coming soon, but that will not be compatible with watchOS 3. As a consequence it seemed right to release this version with as many improvements and fixes as possible before restricting the app to watchOS 4 only.

This version includes the ability to use external heart rate sensors. It also contains improvements to the "Map Only" mode, for when you just want to see a map, but without having to start a workout.

If you haven't tried the app yet then please give it a go!

 

[newtestleper]

Is there an option to add what the weather/temp during the workout was, like the stock Workout app does? Apologies if it's been answered previously.

 

[cfc]

Not at the moment, but I will look into it for the next version. Thanks for the interest!

 

[gtjeta]

Would also this app be able to provide turn by turn gps orders for cyclists? I am now using the bike to move along Madrid, and using something like this from the watch would be incredible. Car and bike directions are not always the same, and I google maps is very bad at doing this, I miss many turns.

 

[cfc]

The app doesn't currently provide turn by turn directions. However it does allow you to upload a GPX route and display it on the map, and in the future I plan to add turn by turn directions for following such GPX routes.

I probably won't add more generic turn by turn functionality to WorkOutDoors because it is intended as a workout app rather than a generic Maps app. However I may well use the same map technology in a separate app which provides similar functionality to Apple's Maps app, but with extra features. One of these features could well be turn by turn navigation for cyclists, but at the moment I am concentrating on WorkOutDoors. Sorry!

 

[gtjeta]

Just bought it, very nice work. Willing to see future enhancements. Something integrating route search, gpx and turn by turn would be so great. But I understand the constraints and the different needs of users.

 

[cfc]

I’m glad that you like the app. Many thanks for buying it.

Having thought about it again I think you are right, so I may add something like that to WorkOutDoors in the future. I had thought of it as non-workout functionality but, as you say, sometimes you may want to follow directions to anywhere as part of a workout.

I will be adding turn by turn navigation for GPX routes so it wouldn’t be too difficult to get a route to a selected location and then give turn by turn navigation to that.

In fact the company that provides the vector data that I use to draw the map (Mapzen) also provide the ability to determine routes using various forms of transport, including cycling and walking, so I may take a look at that.

Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[newtestleper]

I’m sure you’ve seen an uptick in purchases over the last 24 hours. I recommended it in the Apple Watch sub on Reddit and someone tried it. Over 800 upvotes on that person’s post.

 

[cfc]

I’m sure you’ve seen an uptick in purchases over the last 24 hours. I recommended it in the Apple Watch sub on Reddit and someone tried it. Over 800 upvotes on that person’s post.

That's brilliant. Many thanks for that, it's very much appreciated. It did indeed result in a very significant uptick in sales: I sold 5 times as many copies yesterday as I did on Christmas day!

Thanks again!

 

[newtestleper]

I’m sure you’ve seen an uptick in purchases over the last 24 hours. I recommended it in the Apple Watch sub on Reddit and someone tried it. Over 800 upvotes on that person’s post.

The only thing that concerns me is the "invalid data" we've previously spoken about that creeps into maybe one in three workouts. Any idea how to remedy?

 

[cfc]

The only thing that concerns me is the "invalid data" we've previously spoken about that creeps into maybe one in three workouts. Any idea how to remedy?

Are you still seeing this with the latest version (2.1), which was released two weeks ago? This version has loads of bug-fixes. I didn't specifically fix the issue, but I haven't seen any unexplained "invalid data" recently either, so it may have been indirectly fixed.

To explain for others what the issue was, by default the app uses the distance reported by Apple's workout system. This smooths out any inaccuracies and ignores any periods where the GPS signal was not strong enough or where the user was travelling too fast for the workout type (for example if you drive home without stopping a walking workout). The app also measures the total distance using the raw GPS locations and if they are vastly different from the distance reported by Apple, then it informs the user that part of the total distance was considered "invalid".

In the past we sometimes saw that the distances were different but without a reasonable explanation for why, which is what newtestleper is referring to. I must admit that I assumed this was an issue with Apple's system being more sensitive to poor GPS signals and therefore ignoring some of the route. However looking through my recent workouts I can only see it once and that was when the GPS signal was very poor, which would explain it. Which is why I am wondering if it was a problem with the app after all, and that the new version has fixed it.

 

[newtestleper]

Are you still seeing this with the latest version (2.1), which was released two weeks ago? This version has loads of bug-fixes. I didn't specifically fix the issue, but I haven't seen any unexplained "invalid data" recently either, so it may have been indirectly fixed.

Yes, I have the newest version.

 

[cfc]

How many times has it happened with the new version? If you get time then please export GPX files for the workouts with invalid data send them to info@workoutdoors.net. Please configure them to include all the fields, including the GPS accuracies (you can configure which fields are included in the Settings tab on the iPhone app). Many thanks!