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As an extremely rusty, former college athlete, a few swings at the batting cage or a wrong turn of the hips on a downswing means a guaranteed spot on the injured reserve for the upcoming fantasy season. My 20 year old football playing self is utterly embarrassed. I whack a few golf balls around, and I’m icing my back for a week.
I showed up to the Chelsea Piers Golf Club last Tuesday to a crowd of almost freezing, yet extremely eager group of Zepp employees ready to show off there new gadget.
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Today Zepp is announcing the release of the Zepp 2, the next generation of their sensory based digital training device. The Zepp 2, an even lighter version of its predecessor the Zepp 1, also comes with their updated software for golf and baseball and softball. The new smart coach system allows the user to take just a few swings (bat or golf club) and instantly analyzes thousands of different data points. Everything from mechanics, time to impact, to strength and speed are accurately measured by the Zepp 2.
As expected, my athleticism far exceeded my expectations. I’m kidding…red means bad…it was all bad. Based on the swing data, the user will instantly know what areas they are doing well in and what areas they need to improve on. To make myself feel even worse, here are the numbers you would expect from the Angels centerfielder, and MLB first round draft pick, Mike Trout.
There are far too many companies that are collecting data just for the sake of collecting data. The issue that most run in to is how do you present this data to the user in a meaningful way. In other words, a visualization that helps the user improve their game. Zepp has done a pretty good job of taking the guesswork out of your training session. After evaluating your swings, Zepp will create a personalized training program that pinpoints the exact areas you need to improve and helps you focus your efforts.
If for instance, you need to improve your bat speed, Zepp will take you step-by-step on exactly what you need to do to improve your bat speed. There are even video guides with Mike Trout where he will walk you through specific drills focused on that area. When you are finished with the bat speed training program, your swings will be re-evaluated. If your bat speed has improved then it’s on to the next area, and so on, until your knocking homers out of the park on a regular basis.
Aside from Mike Trout, Zepp has partnered with a number of different professional athletes including Jennie Finch, John Mallee, and Tim Walton who guide baseball and softball players through customized plans to improve their swings. 
Personalized instruction for golfers are provided by Michelle Wie, Keegan Bradley, Rick Smith and Pat Shea.
Regardless of skill level, Zepp hopes to make it incredibly easy to improve your game.
“We have always been committed to helping athletes improve at the sports they love, and improvement starts with the right training plan. The addition of Smart Coach will help athletes and coaches at all levels focus their training and improve with greater efficiency and confidence.” — Robin Han, CEO of Zepp
Not only is the Zepp software great for athletes trying to improve their game, coaches can easily track and measure their athletes’ success over time. As a user I can even post updates of pictures with custom captions, videos, and stats that I can easily share across all of my social media channels.
“App users can be part of a larger community in the Zepp 2 news feed within the app to share and view other player and professional athlete data.”
As for the new design of the Zepp 2…
“The sensor’s circular shape was chosen to drive the future of sports, allowing the sensor to be embedded into sporting equipment for baseball, softball, golf, and a variety of other sports”
Additional features include…
- Bluetooth LE for better connection accuracy between sensor and phone
- Two accelerometers and two gyroscopes for better data accuracy
- New silhouette houses a battery that lasts up to eight hours
- A new addition exclusive to baseball-softball is the ‘Track Your Season’ feature that can be utilized to track progress and improvement
Along with the release of the new and improved Zepp 2. Zepp announced the Mike Trout smart bat…
#SmartBat launched today with @OldHickoryBats and @MikeTrout#PoweredByZepphttps://t.co/8TBo0OfU0Dpic.twitter.com/KNLIAv0T21
— Zepp Labs (@ZeppLabs) February 29, 2016
Powered by Zepp
A collaborative effort from Zepp, Old Hickory, and Trout. The smart bat allows you to seamlessly integrate the Zepp 2 sensor into the bat, ensuring zero obstruction during your swing…
The Mike Trout Smart Bat, and the Zepp 2 are just the beginning. We expect a number of exciting announcements to come out of Zepp as they continue to build the next generation of sporting equipment. As for me, you can find me at the Chelsea Pier Golf Club this summer. I got my Zepp 2 last week. 
Zepp 2 is now available for golf and baseball-softball and you can get yours here.