Review For Garmin Vívomove HR Hybrid Smartwatch

 

 

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Garmin vívomove HR, Hybrid Smartwatch for Men and Women, White/Rose Gold

You won’t find many watches as desperate to hide their smarts as the Garmin Vivomove HR. Most of the time it looks like a plain analogue watch.

But with a couple of taps or an incoming notification, a hidden screen turns on, one that lives behind the watch face. Then after a few seconds it’s gone again and you gave a normal watch once more. Magic.

This is also probably the best fitness tracker among what are now known as ‘hybrids’ – in other words, those that externally look like normal watches. There’s enough Garmin DNA to gather an array of stats, including steps and heart-rate.

You do miss out on GPS, so it’s not an obvious choice for serious outdoor runners and cyclists. But anyone looking for a Garmin-lite introduction to sports-tracking should walk this way...

Design: Welcome to the secret Garmin

Check out these photos. That’s right: Garmin sent us the rose gold version of the Vivomove HR, perhaps the most polarising of the four colours the watch comes in.

The white rubber and plastic frame/strap looks a little cheap next to the metal and glass of the facia, but if you feel the same there are black, silver/back and gold/brown alternatives. And all nail the “just a watch” look.

Most ultra-simple hybrid fitness watches use a secondary dial that shows you how close you are to your steps goal, but the Vivomove HR sees no need for one. The result is an ultra-minimal look.
This isn’t a small, wallflower watch, though. Its face has a 43mm diameter, making it a real presence of your wrist. It certainly isn't the version of the Vivomove HR I’d pick, but I do love the look of the black and black/silver editions.

You can also switch straps in just a few seconds too, with a little release mechanism on the underside.

Video Review For Garmin Vívomove HR

       

Display: hidden talents

 

To bring the Vivomove HR screen to life, you double tap the area towards the bottom of the face. A little white read-out of your chosen home screen will then appear.

This might be a digital clock face, the date and time, or perhaps the date and your daily step count. Tiny swipes across this display take you through other info screens. There’s your step count, calories, music controls, the weather, the stress display and the stairs you’ve climbed: loads for a simple-looking hybrid.

You effectively get the same info screens as a Garmin watch with a much, much bigger screen. And that’s pretty neat. You can even tap on each display to get more details, like activity results from previous days. The Vivomove HR is an ambitious little thing.

Given how much the watch tries to cram in, cycling through these screens is surprisingly easy, not a fiddly mess. You use a long press to get to the menu, needed to dive into the settings or start a tracked activity, though this one seems to require a bit more precision.

There’s admittedly a tiny whiff of “beta” to the way the display looks sometimes. Off-centre graphics look a bit out of place and some of the stretched-looking fonts are at odds with the rest of the Vivomove HR’s style. In bright sunlight the display isn’t super-clear either. That said, London in December offered nothing that made the text truly hard to read.

It’s great for checking your step count, how long you’ve been running or who just emailed. But actually reading messages or emails is a real stretch. About 2-3 words fit on each page. It’s pretty swipe-tastic.

Still, with most other watches like this you don’t get notifications at all or, as with the Nokia Steel HR, limited ones. The Garmin Vivomove HR can suck up all notifications, including those from WhatsApp. They’re signposted with a buzz on your wrist. You get the bread and butter of a smartwatch, if not the rest of the menu.

There may be a smoother-looking take on the Vivomove HR’s style in the future. But as a first stab, this is still pretty impressive.

Fitness: fitter than most hybrids 

 

The Vivomove HR also destroys alternatives like the Skagen Hybrid or Nokia Steel in terms of fitness tracking depth.

As well as basic 24/7 step tracking, there’s proper activity tracking for walks, runs, step aerobics, weight lifting and, erm, star jumps.

Go for a run and you’ll see how long you’ve been out on the display. And when you’re done you’ll get stats similar to those from a proper runner’s watch in the Garmin Connect app. There’s pace, calories, distance, a HR chart and even a detailed graph of your pace throughout.

Before you sell your Fenix 3, the Vivomove HR uses an accelerometer to judge pace and distance rather than GPS. You don’t get a map of your route, and the accuracy of data doesn’t match a “real” runner’s watch. That said, the heart rate accuracy is solid for a wrist-worn model.

The Garmin Vivomove HR really does get you a great compromise between low-key design, useful smarts and exercise tracking. It’s also shower and swim ready, although there aren’t any swim-tracking modes.

One slight downside with the Vivomove HR is that its battery doesn’t last as long as some of Garmin’s other gear, or anywhere near as long as other hybrids, which can last six months to a year.

Still, it does still last four or five days with a decent amount of tracking. You can also get it to last two weeks if you cut out the display and smart features. But that would kind of defeat the point of getting a smarter hybrid watch over something like the Fitbit Alta HR.

Garmin Vivomove HR verdict

The Garmin Vivomove HR is a very smart take on a watch that initially doesn’t appear to be smart at all. It’s a minimalist watch that after a few taps turns into a surprisingly good fitness tracker.
More than just a step counter, it has a barometer and a solid heart rate tracker too. A dabbler in all areas, it even offers proper notifications from your phone.

In typical Garmin fashion, the utility and aesthetics can seem at odds with each other at times. And both the normal Vivomove and Nokia Steel HR have more coherent designs.

But with the screen off this really does look like a normal watch, and it can simply do more fitness tracking stuff than most in its class.

Stuff says...

Garmin Vivomove HR review

One of the most fitness-focused hybrid watches around and a great Garmin-lite tracker for newbies

 

Good Stuff 

Better at fitness than it first appears

Fairly good battery life

Supports notifications, including WhatsApp

Uses the same app as Garmin's advanced watches

Bad Stuff 

No GPS

Screen visibility only okay in bright light

Design could do with more refinement

 

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Review Misfit’s Ray is a subtle, stylish fitness bracelet Band

Misfit often gets overlooked. Maybe it's because the company doesn't have the legacy of Garmin or the scale and reputation of Fitbit, but either way, it's not a company that should be written off. Fossil Group recently acquired Misfit, and the acquisition makes sense. Misfit's products have always been minimalist without sacrificing the basic features that all activity trackers are expected to have.

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kwmobile Silicone Watch Strap for Misfit Ray - 2X Fitness Tracker Replacement Band Wristband Bracelet Set with Clasp
The company's $99 Ray is no different—in fact, it's Misfit's most stylish tracker. It doesn't have the necklace chains or wrapped bracelet attachments that the Shine 2 has; instead, it's a simple band paired with a module that masks all of its connectivity. With the Ray, Misfit is still sticking to what it knows best: small, subtle trackers that do all the basics. But as more companies try to strike a compelling balance between fitness and fashion, Misfit has strong competition to live up to.

Design: Elegantly minimalist

The Flash and Shine trackers have always been small and simple, but the Ray steps it up in terms of design and materials. Its tubular module is made of aircraft-grade aluminum, and it supports TPU and genuine leather bands. The Ray's bands are arguably the thinnest of any current fitness tracker, making it look and feel more like a bracelet than a typical device. In the coming months, Misfit will release more bands for the Ray—in addition to necklace attachments so you can wear the Ray around your neck.

The Ray is water-resistant up to 50 meters, and the three biggest pieces of tech inside it are the tri-axis accelerometer, the single multicolored LED, and the vibration motor. Its battery is a small button cell that sits inside the tube, and it will last about four to six months depending on how many alerts you use daily. Since it doesn't have a heart rate monitor, there's no need to wear the Ray uncomfortably tight around your wrist. I like wearing bracelets loosely, and I was able to stack the Ray on my wrist along with a few other bracelets.

The small LED on the Ray is the only thing that would really give it away as a smart device; it could otherwise pass as a piece of jewelry. Companies are struggling to make devices that are more fashionable and wearable than traditional activity trackers. For example, Fitbit's recently released $129 Alta has a rectangular module at the center (with a full touch display) and can be worn with a number of silicone or leather bands that get snapped into either side of the module. The Alta and the Ray look similar, but you can immediately tell that the Alta is a device of some sort—it's the display that gives it away. The Ray matches better with the rest of my jewelry.

You definitely lose some functionality when you remove a display (in the Alta's case, the display lets you tap through the time, steps, calories, and distance), but something like the Ray is meant to complement your other wrist-bound accessories—not replace them. I have the freedom to wear my favorite watch, a bracelet, and the Ray all on the same wrist, without any one object looking out of place.

How do the Ray’s features compare to other bands?

Misfit packs all of the essentials into the Ray. The device monitors steps, calories, and distance on a daily basis, and it automatically recognizes whenever you're doing one particular activity for an extended period of time. After I got home from the gym one morning, I found multiple activity durations recorded in the Misfit app; it recognized when I was walking to and from the gym and when I was on the stepper and treadmill. Unlike the Alta, which uses Fitbit's SmartTrack to categorize those recorded activities by exercise, the Ray can only see whether you've been exercising at all—it can't differentiate between running, cycling, or other activities. However, you can label each recorded workout in the app afterward.

You can set alarms and fully customizable inactivity alerts, which are delivered by a singular LED and a vibration motor. Currently, the Ray only receives call and text alerts from your smartphone, so you won't be able to get calendar alerts like you can with the Alta.

It might seem odd to pit the Fitbit Alta and the Misfit Ray against each other. They're not the same price—the Ray is $99 and Alta is $129—but they do similar things, and they're both meant to be "stylish" alternatives to more conventional fitness bands. And the Alta can only do a few things that the Ray can't: the Alta can recognize exactly what activity you're doing automatically, it can receive calendar alerts, and it can display the time and current stats on its touchscreen.

I used both of the devices while reviewing the Ray, and they both work well and do exactly what they claim to do. I can see how the touch display would be enough for Fitbit to charge $30 more, but aside from that, I don't think the other differences are that major. If you prefer your fitness tracker to have a display that you can use to quickly glean stats and time from, you'll feel a little lost with the Ray. 

Nonetheless, anyone who has considered the Alta should give the Ray a good look, especially if having a fashion-forward device is important to you.

That said, both the Ray and the Alta are limited in fitness features when compared to the $79 Moov Now. That device is made to train you to be better at certain activities, including running, boxing, and swimming, with its live voice trainer and interactive app. It also looks quite like Misfit's Shine 2—a round disk held on your wrist with a stretchy band. The Moov Now is definitely the device to go with if there are specific workouts you want to perfect.

Misfit made the Ray compatible with its Link functions as well. Link basically turns the Misfit trackers into multipurpose remote controls—you can set functions for double- and triple-taps of the device. By default, a double-tap will make the Ray's one LED light up to show your activity progress for the day, but you can customize the triple-tap function. Link lets you connect to apps like 
Harmony, IF, and Yo, and you can also control Misfit's Bolt smart light bulb, your smartphone's music playback, and camera. I programmed mine so that every triple-tap would make my iPhone 6 ring so I can easily find it around my apartment. The Link app does have to be running in the background for these extra features to work, so don't exit out of it completely.

Review For Xiaomi Mi Band 2 Smartband I Alread By One

Low-cost tracker. A fitness wristband for roughly 20 Euros (~$22) with OLED panel, heart-rate monitor, IP67 certification and a battery life of over 20 days? The Chinese manufacturer Xiaomi makes it possible. We tested Xiaomi's Mi Band 2 and report how it fares in everyday use. 

  
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Xiaomi MGW4024GL Mi Band 2 Miband with OLED Display Wristband Bracelet Smart Heart Rate Fitness Activity Tracker 20 Days Standby Time, Black

With its Mi Band 2, Xiaomi, which is one of the market-leading Chinese companies in the smartphone sector, presents the second generation of its fitness tracker lineup. The Mi Band 2 monitors sleep, movements and heart rate. In contrast to the first generation, analysis about sleep and activity behavior can now be directly displayed on an OLED panel alongside other system notifications from Android or iOS. Beyond that, other data can be viewed and evaluated via a corresponding app.

At a converted price of 20 Euros (~$22, 149 Yuan), Xiaomi's Mi Band 2 is available in black, blue, green, and orange on the Chinese market. Online retailers presently sell the fitness tracker for roughly 35 to 40 Euros (~$38 to ~$44). Thus, the second generation of the fitness tracker costs roughly three times as much as the Mi Band 1 - that is available for about 12 Euros (~$13) in Germany.

Xiaomi Mi Band 2

Display : 0.46 inch , x pixel, OLED, glossy: yes

Connections : Sensors: ADI accelerometer, heart-rate sensor

Networking : Bluetooth 4.0

Size : height x width x depth (in mm): 10.5 x 40.3 x 15.7 ( = 0.41 x 1.59 x 0.62 in)

Battery : 70 mAh Lithium-Ion, Battery runtime (according to manufacturer): 480 h

Additional features : wristband, Mi-Core, fanless, ruggedized

Weight : 18 g ( = 0.63 oz / 0.04 pounds), Power Supply: 7 g ( = 0.25 oz / 0.02 pounds)

Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

Case

Xiaomi's Mi Band 2 is made of two parts: A navigation capsule called Mi-Core and a hypo-allergenic silicon wristband (thermoplastic elastomers). The latter is well-manufactured and is pleasant to wear on the skin. Depending on the needs and the user, the silicon wristband can be adjusted from 155 to 210 millimeters and fixed with a lock ring.

The Mi-Core capsule including the fitness wristband has a weight of approximately 18 grams, and it has dimensions of 15.7 x 40.3 x 10.5 millimeters. An OLED panel with a screen diagonal of a good one centimeter fills a large part of the glass front. The manufacturer does not give any detailed information about the glass surface, but Xiaomi states that it is scratch-resistant and has a UV finish. A circular, aluminum control is situated below the OLED panel - a 0.05-millimeter pressure-sensitive button with an anti-oxidizing coat. The heart-rate monitor is situated on the underside of the Mi-Core capsule. 

The casing of the Mi Band 2 is water and dust-protected in IP67 standard. Thus, the fitness tracker can be worn in the shower or in the swimming pool without hesitation. It should also withstand drops from a height of 1.2 meters without serious damage.

Connectivity

The connectivity of the Mi Band 2 is very straightforward. In addition to an ADI accelerometer, the Mi Band 2 has a photoelectric heart-rate sensor. The fitness wristband also features a vibration unit for tactile information and an OLED panel for visual display of smartphone notifications. Calls, WhatsApp, short-messages, and app notifications are differentiated. Which application is displayed as an "app" icon can be configured freely. 

Besides tracking fitness data, the Mi Band 2 can also be used as an identity device in conjunction with an Android device. The smartphone can be unlocked automatically via Bluetooth as soon as the fitness wristband is identified. 

The Mi Band 2 is recharged via the included USB cable. The Mi-Core capsule has to be taken out of the wristband for recharging.

Communication

The Mi Band 2 connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth version 4.0 (2nd generation). Other interfaces are not incorporated. We cannot say anything negative about the connection stability during the test period.

Accessories & Warranty

In addition to the fitness tracker itself, Xiaomi's Mi Band 2 is shipped with the navigation capsule and wristband, a quick-start guide in Chinese and a USB charger.

A 12-month warranty period is included.

Handling & Functions

The fitness wristband is controlled via the button below the screen. The panel in the Mi Band 2 displays time after a short tap on the touch-sensitive button. More user data, e.g. pace count, pulse or battery capacity, can be read when tapped again. It is also possible to display the time by lifting an arm. The user can configure what data is to be displayed in the Mi Fit app. The application can be downloaded from the Play Store (from Android version 4.4) and from the App Store (from iOS version 7) for free - support for Windows Mobile OS is not available. 

The Mi Fit app is clearly arranged - other languages can be selected as system language. A total of 3 main pages can be selected for making setting and for viewing user data. 

Fitness and sleep data are accumulated via the integrated ADI accelerometer. According to the manufacturer, it is based on a modern pedometer algorithm. We compared the logged steps with the pedometer integrated in Samsung's Galaxy S7 Edge and its corresponding S-Health app. The Mi Band always displayed more steps, but both devices only deviated by 2 - 3%. 

In contrast to the logged steps, the heart-rate measurement via the photoelectric heart-rate sensor on the underside of the Mi-Core capsule did not convince us. Firstly, measurements were often inaccurate, and the pulse was not even measured. Secondly, the Mi Band 2 displayed very high, unrealistic heart-rate frequencies (resting heart rate >120 bpm) after erroneous measurements. The logged rates were first on a level with the heart-rate measurements of Samsung's Galaxy S7 Edge after repeating it two or three times.

Display

The OLED panel in Xiaomi's Mi Band 2 has a screen diagonal of a good one centimeter (0.42 inches). Single pixels are visible when looking closer, but that does not interfere with using the monochrome display. We could not find out the exact pixel count per inch (PPI) at the time of this report.

The brightness of the organic screen is mostly sufficient. However, reflections on the glossy surface are distracting in outdoor use as it affects screen legibility. The fitness wristband sometimes has to be covered with a hand to recognize something in direct sunlight.

The panel of the Mi Band 2 exhibited PWM flickering (see screenshot) in the test. The screen's illumination is turned on and off intermittently to control the screen's brightness. We did not find it annoying in everyday use, though.

Battery Life

The lithium-polymer battery in Xiaomi's Mi Band 2 has a nominal output of 70 mAh according to the product description. It is specified at 65 mAh on the device's box. According to the manufacturer, the battery should have a standby time of up to 20 days. The battery state display of our review sample decreased by approximately 3% per day when permanently connected to a smartphone via Bluetooth. Sleep monitoring was also enabled, which reduces the runtime according to Xiaomi. We recorded a rest battery capacity of 83% after a 7-day test period (100% at test start).

Verdict

Xiaomi's second generation of the Mi Band lineup convinced in our test with its strong price-performance package and comfort in wear. Compared with fitness wristbands from other manufacturers, the Mi Band 2's purchase price is low, and it even offers very long battery runtimes. However, there is need for improvement in terms of heart-rate monitoring via the photoelectric heart-rate sensor.

The Mi Band 2 is definitely a good alternative for anyone who has been deterred by the too high prices for fitness trackers, although its availability is limited in Germany.

Unfortunately, the required Mi Fit app is not available for devices based on Windows Phone OS - a cross-platform       support would have been appreciated.

 In review: Xiaomi Mi Band 2. Courtesy of Trading Shenzhen.

 
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Review For Fitbit Versa Smartwatch You Can Buy Its Awesome | Techno Mart

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Bottom Line

8.2 Versa by Fitbit

If you need a smartwatch that doesn't die after just one day of use, buy the Fitbit Versa. If you need a stellar fitness tracker, buy the Versa. If you need a good smartwatch, we can finally say you should buy the Versa.

When the Versa first launched in 2018, it needed some work on the software side. It has since received numerous software updates bringing quick replies, new dashboard features, female health tracking, and much more to the smartwatch. It's still not as robust as Wear OS or the Apple Watch, but for under $200, the Fitbit Versa is a stellar smartwatch.

If you were disappointed by Fitbit’s first smartwatch offering, you aren’t alone. Many had high expectations for the Ionic, but it was too expensive and bulky to appeal to a wide audience. Fitbit knows this, and launched yet another smartwatch — the Fitbit Versa — earlier in March 2018.

The Versa is cheaper and better looking than the Ionic, and it comes with some much needed software improvements. But Fitbit is still relatively new to the smartwatch space. Can it compete with more seasoned veterans like the Apple Watch or Wear OS? We think so, but only in some areas.

Update, January 23, 2019: The Fitbit Versa has received numerous software updates since launch. We have updated our review to reflect those changes.

Design

 The Fitbit Versa looks nothing like the Ionic, and that’s great. It has a much more approachable, compact design, and actually looks more like the Apple Watch. Call it an Apple Watch Lite.

It’s thin — measuring just 11.2mm — and Fitbit says it’s also the lightest metal smartwatch in the U.S.. This is one of the most comfortable smartwatches I’ve worn in recent years, likely due to the improved design and high-quality materials of the case and strap. It feels like Fitbit used a lot of Pebble’s design language here, which was notably lacking from the Ionic. The chamfered edges surrounding the squircle watch case makes for a fun, premium aesthetic we think a lot of people will like.

It also passes the wife test. The Ionic was too bulky and uncomfortable for my wife to wear, but she has no problem with the Versa.

 

If you aren’t so much a fan of the design, you can customize it with a variety watch straps which range from different colored classic watch bands, to Horween leather, to metal mesh bands. The metal ones are a bit pricey, but I think the $50 leather bands are a great way to make the watch look nicer.

One small gripe: swapping out watch bands is unnecessarily difficult. You need to insert each band at a 45-degree angle, which can be frustrating when you’re also trying to hold down the spring pin.
On the front is a square 1.34-inch touchscreen LCD display. It has a 300 x 300 resolution resulting in a pixel density of 316ppi (higher than the Ionic’s). It uses an ambient light sensor to automatically adjust brightness for different lighting conditions. So far, we’ve had no issues seeing the display outdoors in direct sunlight.

Another little design touch worth noting is that the heart rate sensor around back is flush with the casing, so the watch won’t make any red marks or indentations on your wrist if you wear it for a long time. That casing also has a 5ATM water resistance rating, meaning you can wear it in the shower or go swimming with it.

Smartwatch features

The Versa’s software is a big improvement over what we first experienced on the Ionic, and that’s all thanks to the company’s new-and-improved Fitbit OS 2.0. Almost all the lag we experienced on the Ionic is gone, and the user interface is now much more intuitive. Little tweaks like swiping down from the watch face to access your notifications make the software feel more polished (the Ionic made you swipe up from the bottom for some reason).

Fitbit OS 2.0 is a huge improvement, but still has its quirks.

Fitness-minded users will also appreciate the new Fitbit Today feature, which allows you to access your daily and weekly health and fitness stats, historical activity, and recent exercises from your wrist. Previously, you’d need to open the Fitbit app to view a lot of this data.

Note: Fitbit rolled out Fitbit OS 3.0 to the Versa and Ionic in December 2018. The update brings more detailed sleep and exercise stats to the on-device Dashboard, as well as heart rate and hourly activity stats. You can also now log water and food intake from the watch. Finally, the update brings goal-based exercises, which first debuted on the Fitbit Charge 3. Head here to read more about Fitbit OS 3.0.

The Fitbit Versa received an update in May 2018 that introduced the company’s helpful female health tracking feature. Female health tracking is a way for women to track their menstrual cycle, record symptoms, and compare trends over time directly in the Fitbit app. Fitbit’s proprietary algorithm gets smarter and more accurate as you log your period. All of this information will also be available right on your wrist.

You can access even more granular details in the Fitbit app, which has educational content on ovulation, fertility, and more, and even connect with other women for support and advice.

Fitbit rolled out an update in May 2018 that lets users reply to smartphone notifications from their watches. You can reply to just about any message from the Versa using pre-populated responses, and for many apps you can utilize Google’s Smart Replies to respond to messages as well. This makes the Versa a much more compelling smartwatch than it was at launch.

If you’re an iPhone user, you’re out of luck. You’ll still get notifications, but the quick reply feature isn’t going to support iOS any time soon. Fitbit says it’s trying to work with Apple to enable this feature, but I wouldn’t hold your breath — Apple is a stickler when it comes to these things.

The Versa lacks contactless payment support on the regular model in the U.S.. For some reason, the pricier special edition Versa in the States has support for Fitbit Pay, but the $200 regular model doesn’t. That’s only in the U.S. though — in all other parts of the world, both models support Fitbit Pay. This is a weird choice on Fitbit’s part, and it seems like nothing more than a cash grab.

Fitbit Pay is only on the special edition model in the U.S., and that seems like a cash grab.

We were told Fitbit Pay works just like it does on the Ionic, which means the experience will be super convenient — especially when you’re out on a run. If you need to stop for a quick drink at the store, having a watch with contactless payment support means you don’t need to carry around a wallet to buy something. That’s super handy.

Fitbit Pay isn’t available on nearly as many banks as Google Pay, Samsung Pay, or Apple Pay though. That’s something you’ll want to keep in mind before spending extra on the special edition model.

No matter which model you choose, you’ll have 2.5GB of available space on board for music storage. You can load up around 300 of your favorite songs, listen to stations from Pandora, and now listen to playlists on Deezer. Music needs to be side-loaded from a computer though (unless you just want the pre-made playlists from Deezer or Pandora), and the syncing process is slow as molasses. The Fitbit Connect app for desktop is also pretty buggy. Personally, I’d rather skip the process altogether and use my phone for music — even if that means bringing it along on a run.

The number of apps available in Fitbit’s app store is growing, but still lacking. You aren’t able to navigate anywhere with maps, summon a voice assistant to perform a specific action, or even load up more than one watch face at a time.

This isn't the smartest watch out there.

Despite its improvements, Fitbit OS is still clearly in its early stages. It’s quirky and limited compared to other smartwatches. On the positive side, Fitbit has proved it’s focused on improving its software, and doing so in a timely manner.

Fitness and health tracking

 

The Versa makes up for all its quirks with its fitness and health tracking prowess. It’s not the most feature-packed device, but it excels at the basics.

It can track your steps taken, calories burned, heart rate, active minutes, distance traveled (through Connected GPS), and your sleep. In terms of step, calorie, and active minutes tracking, the Versa is just as accurate as most other fitness trackers out there.

The Versa is a great fitness tracker at its core.

There’s no onboard GPS here, so the watch won’t give you the most accurate distance metrics. It can use your phone’s GPS when it’s nearby, but that still means you’ll need to carry your phone with you on a run to get accurate pace, distance, and speed metrics. The Ionic has GPS built in, but you’ll have to pay about $70 more for it.

Fitbit’s PurePulse heart rate monitor makes a return, which will track your resting and active heart rate throughout the day. It’s mostly accurate during workouts, but this is a wrist-based sensor and won’t pick up every little change as well as a chest strap could.

I took a run with my trusty Polar H10 chest strap, the Garmin fenix 5, and the Fitbit Versa. The H10 recorded my max heart rate of 175bpm at around the 26-minute mark, and the fenix 5 was able to hit that mark too. The Versa only picked up a heart rate of around 154bpm at that point.
Obviously we’re looking for spot-on numbers here, but it’s okay if they’re not completely accurate. Wrist-based heart rate monitors are good tools to help you better keep track of your heart rate throughout the day and during workouts, but they shouldn’t be relied upon to give you accurate numbers at all times.

That heart rate data will help the Versa measure your Cardio Fitness Level —  which should help you better understand your fitness level compared to other people your age and gender. This is basically an estimate of your VO2 Max, or your cardiovascular fitness level. The Cardio Fitness Score is based on your resting heart rate and user profile, so Fitbit uses a lot of your health data to give you a more precise score. The more you wear your Fitbit, the more accurate this number will be.
This section of the app isn’t just a sea of numbers you need to try to make sense of; it also gives you recommendations on how you can improve your score over time. Losing a bit of weight and exercising more frequently can help raise your score (at least that’s the case for me).

The Versa can keep track of running, biking, treadmill walking or running, weight training, interval workouts, and swimming. Everything else can be recorded in the general “workout” sport profile. During a run, the watch will track your pace, average pace, distance, total time, steps, calories, and heart rate. You can get most of this information in all the other sport profiles too, plus your number of lengths when you’re swimming. Fitbit still hasn’t implemented a rep counting feature in the weights mode, but that’s okay — it doesn’t seem like any company has figured out an accurate way to count reps yet.

For those of us who need a little bit of coaching from time to time, the Versa has a feature called Fitbit Coach. This is a series of device-guided workouts that will help you exercise no matter where you are. Out of the box, the Versa comes with three workouts: 10 Minute Abs, 7 Minute Workout, and Warm It Up. You can access more by downloading the Fitbit Coach app. There’s even a paid premium option if you want access to Fitbit’s entire catalogue of workouts.

I really like the Fitbit Coach. It’s improved a lot since the FitStar days on the Fitbit Blaze, and it’s a unique, fun way to motivate yourself when you don’t feel like exercising. Not everyone is going to use this feature, but you should at least give it a shot.

With the Versa, Fitbit continues to be the leader in sleep tracking.

Fitbit continues to be a leader in sleep tracking for a few reasons. It not only collects all the data you’d expect of a fitness tracker, but it displays that data in an easy-to-understand way. You can easily see what sleep stages you were in during the night, a 30-day average of your sleep stats, and how your sleep compares to other people of the same age and gender.

Sleep tracking is only going to get better over time, too. The Versa, like the Ionic, has a built-in relative SpO2 sensor which isn’t being utilized yet. Fitbit wants to eventually use this sensor to detect sleep apnea, but that’s just something the company is exploring for now.

The Versa trounces the smartwatch competition in battery life. Fitbit OS is a light operating system overall, enabling the Versa to last upwards of four days on a single charge — and that’s with activity tracking included.

Another bonus: Fitbit is now including a sturdy, dock-like charger with the Versa. Just pinch the sides of the charger, place the watch inside, and make sure the connection pins are lined up. It’s way easier to connect than the Ionic’s terrible magnetic charger.

Fitbit Versa, Versa Lite, and Versa Special Edition

Display	1.34-inch touchscreen LCD 300 x 300 resolution ~316ppi 1:1 aspect ratio 1,000-nit maximum brightness Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Battery	Smartwatch mode: 4+ days 145mAh Lithium-polymer battery
Memory	4GB (2.5GB available for music storage) (excluded on Lite) Saves seven days of motion data, saves daily totals for the past 30 days
Materials	Case and buckle: aluminum Strap: flexible, durable material similar to that used in many sports watches
Sensors and components	3-axis accelerometer 3-axis gyroscope (excluded on Lite) Optical heart rate monitor Altimeter (excluded on Lite) Ambient light sensor Vibration motor Wi-Fi antenna (802.11 b/g/n) (excluded on Lite) Connected GPS NFC (special edition only in the U.S.)
Water resistance	5ATM
Notifications	Call, text, calendar, email, music control, and much more
Compatibility	Android, iOS, & Windows
Dimensions	Case dimensions: 39.36 x 37.65 x 11.2mm Small: 140-180mm Large: 180-220mm
Colors	Classic: black band with black aluminum case, peach band with rose gold aluminum case, gray band with silver aluminum case Special edition: charcoal woven band with graphite aluminum case, lavender woven band with rose gold aluminum case Lite: white/silver aluminum, lilac/silver aluminum, marina blue/marina blue aluminum, mulberry/mulberry aluminum

The Fitbit app

The Fitbit app is one of the more easy-to-use fitness apps out there.

All your need-to-know information can be found on dashboard (the main screen), where you’ll find your step, calorie, and active minutes stats for the day, as well as sleep, heart rate, and more. Clicking on any one of these sections will give you more information on that particular metric.

This is one of the most social fitness apps we’ve used. It lets you connect with other Fitbit owners and join in on conversations with people in the community. You can become a member of a particular dieting or exercise group and chat with like-minded users about, well, anything you’d like. All of these conversations take place in the community tab.

The community is one of the most powerful aspects of the Fitbit ecosystem.

The challenges section of the app will push you to go that extra mile, while the guidance tab is where you’ll find Fitbit Coach.
The best thing about using the Fitbit app is that it’s compatible with dozens of other third-party services like MyFitnessPal, MapMyRun, Lose It!, Weight Watchers, Endomondo, and more. If you’re invested in one of those ecosystems and don’t want to give it up for Fitbit, you don’t have to — all your Fitbit data will sync and you can continue using your favorite apps.

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