Tracking my steps and exercises has been second nature to me for over 10 years now, when I first started the usage of activity trackers to support me chart my fitness development and neatly being. Over the previous eight years working at SELF journal I’ve had so many potentialities to study all completely different forms of wearable trackers for our Health Awards, but Fitbit has been ready to preserve me a devoted user with its straight forward-to-use phone app and right monitoring technology.
I beget had many Fitbits over time, including the Blaze, Flex, and Fee fashions, but ever since the Fitbit smartwatch came on the market, I’ve stopped the usage of a worn fitness tracker. I currently use the Fitbit Versa 2, which is a smartwatch, but I changed into pleasantly taken aback to study the Fee 4 and secure that it has the total points of a same old fitness tracker, including heart price monitoring, step monitoring, and sleep monitoring—but with about a recent points that originate it an fabulous possibility for a smartwatch loyalist love me. Built-in GPS, tap-to-pay points, and heart price zones are ethical about a of the recent add-ons I loved that reminded me of the efficiency of my smartwatch.
How I Examined
Since I’ve worn a smartwatch for thus long, my predominant reason changed into to gaze how this activity tracker when put next. Is it as straight forward to make use of as my smartwatch? Will I catch the identical benefits from the Fitbit phone app? Will I be ready to trace my exercise as effectively as I attain now?
We also requested a panel of consultants (and worn expert standards that we gathered for a outdated Health Awards) to support resolve how I must check the tracker. All mentioned that finding the suitable tracker is a private project, since there are this form of lot of alternate solutions to personalize to your wants. However they did yell about a issues to eye out for when deciding: Reliability and ease of use, accuracy, battery existence, comfort, vogue, ease of syncing, water resistance, and other points. To verify the Fitbit Fee 4, I wore it for three weeks and did very completely different exercises to gaze the map in which it stacks up, including the next:
- Running nearly each and each day at completely different speeds and completely different distances
- Wearing the Fitbit all day, on a standard basis (even at evening) to study battery existence and comfort
- Wearing the Fitbit in a pool to study water resistance
- Utilizing the Fitbit for a differ of exercises including power coaching, working and HIIT
You too can read more about the rotund standards for activity trackers and smartwatches right here, and gaze my thoughts on the Fitbit Fee 4, below.
Reliability and Ease of Spend
Out of the sphere, the Fee 4 (and most Fitbits) are very straight forward to impress and use. The tracker changed into charged already when I opened the sphere, and it changed into straight forward to plight up the recent instrument within the Fitbit app, since the app offers a list of the total watches and trackers they beget got accessible. Unfortunately, Fitbit will finest will allow you to beget got one tracker linked to your app at a time, so since I had been the usage of the Versa 2 I needed to delete that eye in expose so to add the recent tracker.
The app will point to to you the total points of the eye, straight forward the correct formula to set on it in your wrist, and straight forward the correct formula to discover it irresistible. It also has a allotment the set potentialities are you’ll maybe even customise the clock face, add a bank card to your pockets for straight forward payments, and likewise gaze a differ of third-party apps that are accessible in for syncing. If right here’s your first time the usage of a Fitbit, potentialities are you’ll maybe furthermore customise all of your non-public files. All in all, plight up and use changed into straight forward, straight forward, and intuitive.
Accuracy
Over the years, one thing I’ve found that the Fitbit excels at is correct monitoring. Even as you’ve worn a Fitbit tracker for some time it would use GPS data to calibrate your scamper length in walking and working for a more right measurement. On the other hand, a wide recent characteristic about the recent Fee 4 is that you don’t want your phone at all! The tracker comes with its possess GPS so potentialities are you’ll maybe even back your phone at house when doing your exercises (this characteristic is supplied on the Fitbit Ionic smartwatch, but is recent for the Fitbit Fee).
To verify the Fee 4’s monitoring accuracy, I did about a issues. First, I walked 75 steps (manually counting them myself), to gaze if the tracker accurately tracked them all (it did). Then, I tested it on a high-tail, which is the set I discovered some discrepancies. I went to the Saddle River Pathway in New Jersey for this allotment, which is one in every of my favourite areas to high-tail for the reason that six-mile path (12 miles roundtrip) has markers alongside the map in which for each and each .1 mile so potentialities are you’ll maybe even back be conscious of your distance.
One yell about my working take a look at: I’ve been working for over 10 years now and had been at just a few fitness phases along with velocity phases. I worn to be ready to high-tail five miles without taking a spoil but now, after taking some time off from working, I’m in a position to finest attain one mile without stopping. On listing of of this, I now use the high-tail/stroll skill after my first mile. This has been helping me re-catch my endurance, but I’ve observed that it also confuses some fitness trackers, including previous Fitbits I’ve worn, and I wanted to gaze how the Fee 4 would fare on a aggregate high-tail/stroll for four miles.
I ran for my first mile and worn my Nike Hunch App along with the mile markers to study with the readings on my Fee 4. At the one-mile marker all three said one mile precisely.
On the other hand, I made a decision to high-tail/stroll for mile two. At the mile two marker my Nike Hunch App changed into region on again, but my Fitbit changed into .06 off.
I did one other high-tail/stroll for mile three and then ran the final time for mile four, for a entire time of 52 minutes. By the tip of my four-mile session (as measured by the path’s mile markers) my Nike Hunch App said 4.02 miles, while the Fitbit said 4.13. This isn’t a monumental incompatibility, but it’s a long way one thing to yell within the occasion you generally attain high-tail/stroll form exercises. I beget tested the Fee 4 more than one times after this foremost high-tail and if I high-tail the final time or stroll the final time it’s right but it repeatedly slightly off when I combine each and each activities.
Battery Life
Fitbit says that the Fee 4 has a seven-day battery existence, which I set to the take a look at, as neatly. After a day of minimal activity, the set all I did changed into be certain that that I hit my 15,000 step aim (without any form of exercise), the eye changed into aloof at 93% battery existence on the tip of the day, which is wide for a rotund day of walking! On the other hand, this isn’t how I generally use my activity trackers, since I’m a lovely active particular person: I high-tail no longer no longer up to 1 mile each and each day, along with be certain that that I stroll ample to repeatedly hit my 15,000 step aim. On high of that, some days I attain a 45-minute exercise class.
So, for one other experiment, I tested the battery existence by charging it completely and then monitoring how long it took the battery to empty according to my same old diploma of activity. The Fee 4 lasted about 4 days without charging, which is aloof a protracted span of time, losing about 25% battery existence per day. By the evening of the fourth day I changed into at 5% so I plugged it in overnight to price. (I’ve charged it in some unspecified time in the future of the day as neatly and found that it finest takes an hour and a half of for the eye to price completely from 0%.) I consistently also wore the tracker to sleep each and each evening, except it changed into charging, which didn’t have an effect on the battery existence very mighty when I woke up within the morning.
Comfort
When carrying my smartwatch all day, I’m in a position to generally repeatedly sense that it’s on my wrist, however the lightweight feel of the Fee 4 is a monumental plus. Generally I don’t even impress I’m carrying it except I catch a notification or bother, which comes in to hand when I’d like to trace my sleep especially. Sleep is a an essential allotment of fitness recovery but I’m no longer the finest sleeper, if I’m being correct, since I’m very soft to gentle and noise. Even though my smartwatch has a sleep monitoring feature, it repeatedly felt too heavy on my wrist and I couldn’t beget keeping it on all evening. Since the Fee 4 is so lightweight I had been ready to set on it to mattress nearly each and each evening without even noticing it be on (and certain, my sleep ranking according to the Fee 4 is within the center-broken to modern differ, so it’s one thing I beget to work on).
The Fee 4 also comes with two measurement alternate solutions correct within the sphere. I tried on the itsy-bitsy first, and because it’s an adjustable band it match me completely. The itsy-bitsy measurement can match wrists with 5.5 to 7.1 trudge circumference, while the clean is designed for wrists with 7.1 to eight.7 trudge circumference. Most Fitbit watches that I’ve had within the previous either advance in itsy-bitsy or clean; potentialities are you’ll maybe even measure your wrists sooner than time to know the suitable match.
Vogue
Vogue is one other essential facet of activity trackers: The band that incorporates the Fee 4 is dim with a ribbed sample to present it some depth, but it’s no longer one thing I’d set on out to a love evening—I’d strictly use this band for realizing. The appropriate thing is that Fitbit presents three other bands in just a few colours on their net net page that work with the Fee 4 to originate it a minute more classy. I also found a bunch of alternate solutions on Amazon, so I could possibly maybe beget a recent band each and each day of the week if I wanted.
Syncing
Syncing the Fee 4 to the Fitbit app is the finest formula to gaze all of your activity and exercises all the map in which thru the day. I beget found that syncing to the Fitbit app on my iPhone is glorious seamless. I generally beget the app originate within the background on my phone, with all-day sync chosen, so at particular times all the map in which thru the day, the app would sync robotically. Right here’s wide because it skill I don’t beget to repeatedly originate the app and refresh the display cloak to sync my app. As soon as within the app, potentialities are you’ll maybe even gaze the total data you’ve synced since first developing the listing. I’m in a position to gaze my steps, weight, sleep, meals and exercises the total map back to 2014 when I first started the usage of the Fitbit app.
Water Resistance
Fitbit states that the Fee 4 is also waterproof up to 50 meters. While I couldn’t completely take a look at whether that changed into correct, I did take a look at its water resistance by the usage of the tracker in my friend’s swim spa. The water isn’t very deep in a swim spa but potentialities are you’ll maybe even swim towards a valid fresh of water so it mimics the feeling of being in a pool. I swam for about 10 minutes and then wore the eye within the water the relaxation of the day, which amounted to about five hours. I changed into a minute nervous that after I got out of the water that the eye wouldn’t work anymore but my worries had been spurious as the eye continues to work as expected.
Diversified Facets
With so many points accessible for trackers, consultants boom to in actuality impress what points are essential to you earlier than you preserve shut. For me, one in every of my favourite points about the Fitbit is the app, which is de facto comprehensive. The Fitbit app will most seemingly be conscious your entire activities, meals, water consumption, length, resting heart price, and more. Mostly all the pieces that I could possibly maybe want to know about my physique all the map in which thru the day is saved within the app.
A brand recent characteristic of the Fee 4 is monitoring your zone minutes, which each and each and each every so incessantly skill even as potentialities are you’ll maybe be within the elephantine burning zone or the cardio zone, for optimum fitness outcomes. The American Coronary heart Affiliation recommends 150 minutes of moderate activity (the elephantine burn zone) or 75 minutes of spirited activity (the cardio zone) per week. Whenever I attain a exercise it tracks 1 zone minute when I’m within the elephantine burn zone and 2 zone minutes when I’m within the cardio zone, according to my heart price. You too can customise the zone minutes you buy to beget to attain per day and per week, looking on what your dreams are, which I discovered to be a nice addition to my exercises. I despise having to repeatedly eye down at my eye when working or doing a HIIT class to gaze my heart price. With this recent characteristic, the eye will yell you even as you swap between your elephantine burning zone and cardio zone. I aloof be certain that that to catch to my 15,000 steps per day however the zone minutes support me even be certain that that I catch ample moderate or spirited activity every day, which I judge is a wide recent characteristic.
Yet every other recent characteristic of the Fee 4 is the capability to join and administration Spotify correct in your eye, but unfortunately you wish a Spotify premium subscription, which I did not beget, to play around with this characteristic.
The Bottom Line
In the tip I beget to scream I’ve grown to love the recent Fee 4. With its slim impression and out of the sphere points, I changed into pleasantly taken aback on how identical it changed into to my Versa 2 smartwatch. And with the $149 mark, it’s cheaper than most smartwatches on the market, too. Must potentialities are you’ll maybe be attempting to secure a gentle-weight and straight forward-to-use tracker, right here’s the finest one I’ve tried. If Fitbit would let me beget two trackers synced to my phone straight away it would be ideal, but except then I bound to stick with my recent Fee 4 for the foreseeable future.
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