When it comes to smart eyewear you can wear underwater, Form's goggles are effectively the Meta Glasses of the pool. They aren't as well known, and they carry no cameras or speakers, yet they laid down the blueprint for what smart eyewear for swimmers should look like. Now the company has a new, more affordable model called the Smart Swim 2 LT, priced at $149.
A Welcome Price Cut, Though Not Exactly Cheap
Form has always had one obvious sticking point, and that is the price. The first pair launched at $199, and newer models climbed to $250. By comparison, a premium pair of Speedo goggles runs around $50 to $80. That makes the $149 Smart Swim 2 LT the most affordable pair of connected swim goggles Form has made. It still isn't cheap, but the price is clearly a step in the right direction. The lower cost brings a few hardware compromises, none of which are likely deal-breakers for most swimmers. The bigger catch is that getting the full Form experience still means paying extra for a subscription.
The Look and Feel Are Largely Unchanged
In terms of looks and feel, the Smart Swim 2 LT is pretty much identical to earlier Form goggles, aside from a couple of differences. They are still not as lightweight as a regular pair of swimming goggles, but the extra heft isn't enough to make a noticeable difference once you're in the water. They also ship with additional nose guards so you can improve the seal around the lenses.
One of the biggest hardware casualties is the heart rate monitor, which is built into Form's pricier goggles. You can still track heart rate here, but you'll need to pair an external monitor over Bluetooth. Ideally that would be something like the Polar Verity Sense, which can be clipped to the goggles, shortening the transmission distance and making the data more reliable.
A Display That Puts Stats in Your Eyeline
The same display technology is used to present real-time swim metrics and other data to one side of the lenses. It relies on waveguide optics, which essentially carry light to the built-in display to create a dot-matrix-style interface. That simple design keeps you from being overwhelmed by stats or available workouts projected into your line of sight. Other goggles with built-in displays have come and gone, including the now-discontinued FINIS Smart Goggles, but Form's interface remains the best example of how to build a non-distracting display into a pair of swimming goggles.
Tracking and Battery Both Hold Up
Form's swim tracking is on par with a host of smartwatches and sports watches. The Apple Watch and several Garmin watches offer some of the strongest swim tracking around, and the Smart Swim 2 LT recognizes swim strokes and captures lap counts and distance covered just as accurately. Battery life tells the same story. The quoted 14-hour battery life is enough to comfortably log 30-minute sessions three or four times a week, for multiple weeks, without worrying about charging.
Open-Water Data Is a Little Limited
If you plan to use these goggles for open-water swims, the data is pared back. You can see how much distance you've covered and view metrics like stroke rate. More accurate distance tracking and data like pacing only come if you already own an Apple Watch or a Garmin watch, which sends that information from the watch to the heads-up display.
One open-water feature is free to access, and that is SwimStraight. It was previously locked behind Form's Premium subscription. It uses the built-in compass sensor to help you swim in a straight line. It works really well once you've gone through the slightly awkward calibration routine to set up the compass.
The Subscription and HeadCoach's Real Magic
That premium subscription mainly unlocks Form's suite of training and workout features. It starts at $9.99 a month, with the option to pay $99 up front for a year of access. It lets you create custom workouts or choose from preset ones to add structure to your swim time. It also includes HeadCoach, which is the most compelling reason to subscribe.
HeadCoach works by scoring your swims and then recommending workouts based on performance. It also suggests drills to improve your technique. In the goggles, the feature looks like a video game from the '80s. It might recommend a drill to work on your head pitch, for instance when a swimmer's head and shoulders sink too far into the water and create drag. On the screen a dot, representing your head, bobs above and below a line, and the goal is simply to keep that dot from dropping too low. The drill is simple yet very effective, and it is Form's secret sauce.
Who Should Buy Them
There's no denying that what Form has built for swimmers is genuinely great. The Smart Swim 2 LT is the more affordable way to try Form's innovative features, and it's the version of these goggles worth buying. The downside is that you still need to pay for a subscription to unlock the training and coaching features, which keeps these goggles out of reach for a lot of swimmers. But if you can swing the investment, they are an effective way to track your pool and open-water swims, visualize your metrics and skills, and improve your form.
