The Adidas is a set of gadgets designed to coach a person through running workouts and keep track of progress with a sync feature to an Adidas' to record data and offer advice.

The miCoach Pacer package, which for US$139.99 includes the miCoach Pacer device, a heart monitor and sensor that either fits inside certain Adidas running shoes or on the shoelaces of any kind of shoe, faces stiff competition against Nike, which promotes a similar with Apple that work with iPod digital music players.

The idea behind both devices is to help people get more out of their workouts in terms of training data and coaching, while enjoying digital music. Adidas originally launched the miCoach system with a Samsung Electronics with a built-in digital music player a few years ago. That system was sold in Europe and not in the U.S.

The new miCoach Pacer package does not include a Samsung device nor do the companies work together to promote it in North America, Adidas representatives said.

The biggest difference between the Adidas and Nike+iPod systems is that the Adidas miCoach works with any digital music player and any kind of shoe, while Nike+iPod is designed exclusively for Nike shoes and iPods. The miCoach system also does not require the purchase of a digital music player. It can be used stand alone, but the miCoach Pacer will only coach during a workout, it won't play songs.