When we’re hitting the pool before the sun’s up, there’s no doubt that we make each and every swim workout count. So when we heard that FINIS was releasing a new generation of fitness-tracking devices that could help us get our swim workouts down to a science, they had our attention.

The Swimsense Live is the next generation of the original FINIS Swimsense, updated with more accurate tracking systems, new swim-specific data, and Bluetooth technology—allowing swimmers to instantly upload their workouts to the FINIS Live application. Built by swimmers, the Swimsense was designed to withstand continuous water immersion while recording the kind of swim-specific stats that swimmers like (and need) to see: total laps, stroke type, SWOLF, distance per stroke, interval time, and more. The Swimsense will also record both swim and rest time in intervals, which gives a more accurate read out of your active time in the water. The device can store up to 14 workouts at a time, but the FINIS Live application will store all of your summary data for review anytime.

When we asked for some specific highlights of the new Swimsense Live, a few things stood out…

First, FINIS spent a lot of time into improving this second-generation device, spending hours testing and improving upon their original algorithms in their stroke lab. According to FINIS, these improvements ensure that the Swimsense Live is providing some seriously accurate swim data. Second FINIS made their mobile application especially useful coaches since it can tack multiple Swimsense devices at once, allowing coaches to easily keep track of their swimmers’ essential data in one place. And finally, in addition to the mobile application, FINIS developed a Web platform where you can track your workouts as well as upload your data to Swim.com, TrainingPeaks, RunKeeper, and more.

Available now for about $180, the Swimsense comes with a rechargeable battery that offers up to 7 hours of battery life and includes a magnetic dock with a USB cable for easy charging. This price point is in the ballpark of the Garmin Swim, which is available for about $150. How the two devices stack up next to each other? Only time will tell…