Moto 360 Sport Will Arrive in Early January in the U.S.

The Moto 360 Sport will become available in the U.S. in early January, providing a decidedly sporty take on Motorola’s smart watch, with built-in GPS and a cool “AnyLight” display for both indoor and outdoor use.

I had my first peek at Motorola’s next generation Moto 360 smart watches back in September. At the time, Motorola announced three basic styles of Moto 360: Men’s (in two sizes, 46mm and 42mm), women’s, and, “coming soon,” a special Sport model.

Now we know that “soon” is January 7.

As I wrote back in September, Moto 360 Sport is a new 42mm design that offers a few upgrades over the other models. That is, it adds a built-in GPS for speed, distance and rate, and maps—without needing a phone. It also has an AnyLight display, which Lenovo says offers both reflective and transmissive views so you can see the watch face on the go in any conditions. And it features a unique silicon band that is more secure, water resistant, and wicks away sweat.

I’m impressed by Motorola in general and by the Moto 360 in particular. These devices are highly customizable using Motorola’s awesome Moto Maker online tool, which I love. And the Moto 360 is pretty, with a round face and high quality construction, and it’s served by Android Wear, which I find to logical and well-designed.

But the Sport model is of particular interest and could be an interesting competitor to Microsoft Band 2, which I consider to be the best fitness wearable. And according to Motorola, it comes with a few additional features that might put it over the top: Heart rate monitoring and a music player, the latter of which Band lacks. It also integrates with other fitness apps, which could be important, including Fitbit.

So here’s the schedule:

December 18: Moto 360 Sport will be available in the U.K. and France

January 7: Moto 360 Sport will be available for $299 on Motorola.com and at select other online retailers.

January 10: Moto 360 Sport hits Best Buy stores nationwide and Motorola’s cool new Moto Shop in downtown Chicago.

Later in 2016: Moto 360 Sport will be available in Brazil, Canada, China, Mexico and Spain in the new year, Motorola says.

You can find out more on the Moto 360 web site.