The 2 best fitness trackers, and what real users and critics say about them

Time to get in shape for the new year. Photo credit: undrey / 123RF.

In a nutshell: Forget about a gym membership that you’ll stop using after a few weeks – start the new year right with a gadget that will help you stay fit in realistic ways. After parsing through lots of reviews and comments, here are the two best fitness trackers for 2017. Importantly, both support iPhone and Android. One of these will surely be the right choice for you.

Fitbit Charge 2

• US$150
• Pliable and good-looking band in choice of six colors
• Fitbit app can’t pull data into Apple Health

Photo credit: Fitbit.

First launched September 2016, the Fitbit Charge 2 is the top pick of many reviews – as is the identically priced Garmin Vivosmart HR+, making them closely matched rivals with a lot of similar features.

So let’s make a list of where Fitbit’s Charge 2 surges ahead: greater style, a more premium feel, a slimmer band, better-rated companion app, bigger screen, OLED display that’s brighter and has deeper black, interchangeable bands, cardiovascular fitness score, and guided breathing exercises.

Photo credit: Fitbit.

The arch-rivals are identical in quite a lot of ways, such as tracking steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned, floors climbed, active minutes, reminders to move, a battery life of five days, optical heart rates monitors, and automatic sleep tracking.

One notable Fitbit omission is GPS. The Charge 2 requires your phone to be nearby if you want GPS tracking and routes information related to your run or ride.

While the Charge 2 doesn’t have a true touchscreen, it can be tapped – firmly – so as to cycle through your main fitness data. The stainless steel button on the side goes through the menu options.

Fitbit’s eponymous app tops Garmin’s in terms of positive reviews in the app store.

What reviews say

Ars Technica summarized the gizmo as “the best-value Fitbit device” that’s “ideal for new users.”

Fitbit’s auto-tracking continues to impress, though, so you can rely on that feature to pick up most running, walking, and biking workouts (it can also auto-track “aerobic workouts” like dance and Zumba, as well as a few select sports including basketball and soccer). I’m not a seasoned runner, so I often alternate running a few minutes with walking a few minutes, and I was worried that the Charge 2 might not record my workout because of that back-and-forth. Not so – it registered just about 30 minutes of running (which was more like 20 minutes of running and 10 minutes of power-walking) without me starting a workout manually. The graphs in the app reflected my heart rate as well, showing where I peaked during the hardest parts of my run and where my heart rate gradually slowed down when I transitioned to walking.

The reviewer also gave a good intro to an important new feature:

[It can] monitor your “cardio fitness level,” or estimated VO2 max measurement, and set up interval training. VO2 max is the maximum rate that your body can use oxygen during intense exercise, and the most accurate way to measure it is to be hooked up to multiple machines that measure heart rate as well as oxygen and carbon dioxide output and input. The Charge 2 is certainly the cheapest fitness tracker that can give you an estimate of this statistic.

PCMag dubs it “the best new fitness tracker we’ve tested in some time.”

New to the Charge 2 is a Relax mode, which is a guided breathing exercise based on your heart rate you can do after a workout. You select between two- and five-minute sessions, in which you match your breathing to a contracting and expanding circle on the tracker’s display. A pixelated wave at the bottom of the screen indicates your real-time heart rate. As you inhale and exhale, your heart rate (and the wave) undulate, so you can see the effect of your breathing. The goal is to reduce anxiety, stress, and return your heart rate to normal after a workout. I found this feature effective, even when I wasn’t running. On the bus, train, at work, or any other stressful environment, it’s relaxing to focus on the Charge 2’s display and just breathe.

What users say

Amazon shopper “Adam” finds the Charge 2 “to be an incredible fitness device compared to the Apple Watch” as it’s so streamlined and focused on your exercise and body. He also rates the app.

I think this where the Fitbit completely shines as a fitness product. The app is so user friendly, so streamlined, and generally fun to play around with. I love watching my cardio fitness score change and keeping an eye on my resting heart rate overnight. Apple has a ton of third-party apps which are great, but it lacks the complete integration of the Fitbit.

“J. Harlan” thinks it’s a solid choice for newcomers as well as a great upgrade for earlier Fitbit buyers.

Navigation is relatively easy. When selecting specific workouts (you can customize the list in app), you hit the button on the side to get to the workout screen, then tap to cycle through them (run, weights, treadmill, elliptical, etc). Hold the button and your workout starts. During the workout you can cycle through metrics specific to your activity such as calories burned, heart rate, etc.

Garmin Vivosmart HR+

• US$150
• Three colors on offer
• GPS built in

Photo credit: Garmin.

First launched May 2016, the Garmin Vivosmart HR+ beats the arch-rival Charge 2 in a few areas: built-in GPS, a proper touchscreen, water resistance, a wider variety of phone notifications, more detailed sleep insights, and more data on your runs.

The Vivosmart HR+ is not a looker, which will deter some. The LCD screen doesn’t show deep blacks and the excess of plastic is dowdy.

Photo credit: Garmin.

While the Garmin Connect app looks better on paper, with support for the Health app on iOS, it has less favorable reviews than Fitbit’s. Indeed, many tech blogs commend Fitbit’s app, while a significant number bemoan Garmin Connect’s confusing and cluttered interface.

What reviews say

AndroidCentral calls a dead heat between these top two fitness wearables, but if notifications are your thing, one definitely has an edge:

The Garmin device also comes out ahead when it comes to smartphone notification options. The Vívosmart HR+ can display call, text, email, social media and basically any other notification from your smartphone that you’d like. The Fitbit, on the other hand, only supports call, text, and calendar event notifications. No matter which device you’re using, though, notifications can be a bit hard to read since their display’s aren’t that big.

TrustedReviews hails the fact that the newest Garmin gizmo is super sensual:

Garmin has loaded the wearable with a heart-rate monitor, GPS, accelerometer, barometric altimeter and pretty much every other sensor that you could possibly think of. It’s also pretty darn rugged and has been designed to survive submersions at depths of up to 5 ATM (50 metres). This makes it one of a select few activity trackers with basic smartwatch functionality that can be worn 24/7.

However, Garmin’s app can be off-putting.

The app isn’t the most intuitive I’ve used […] mainly due to the sheer volume of data and number of submenus it throws at you. This will potentially put off those looking for a more casual experience, simply wanting to know how far they ran and for how long.

What users say

Amazon buyer hello-world particularly likes the regular reminders to get off your butt:

The HR+ really motivates! After one hour of inactivity, it buzzes and the “Move!” bar appears on the time screen. Every 15 minutes after that, it adds a minibar (up to four) so you know when you’ve been sitting still for two hours. It takes about 200 steps (or 100 jumping jacks or five flights of stairs) to clear the bar when it is maxed out, but fewer steps the sooner you clear it. There are also fireworks on the screen and a triple buzz when a fitness goal (e.g. steps per day, floors climbed, etc) is achieved. You even get virtual trophies.

Nooky is a fan of the built-in GPS.

The GPS seems to work just like any other Garmin device we have. Initially, we were concerned – it being such a small watch – that there would be some compromise. The device is more or less waterproof. It can be left on while showering or swimming – a huge plus.

Verdict

If you really need GPS so that you can run or workout without your phone nearby, the Garmin is your choice. But for most people, the Fitbit Charge 2 is the one to pick, blending style with the right line-up of fitness and wellbeing-oriented features.

This post The 2 best fitness trackers, and what real users and critics say about them appeared first on Tech in Asia.

from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/fitness-tracker-wearables-meta-review-fitbit-garmin
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