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Fitness Wearable |OT| A place for your Fitbit, Garmin, Jawbone, and many many more
- Thread starter Fox318
- Start date
people seem to like the Jawbone for sleep tracking.
I think for most of these it comes down to price and what you want.
I think you should just spring for the Up3. If you keep an eye on slickdeals, you'll see them go up for around $100 fairly frequently. The heart rate monitor really improves the sleep tracking.
Smushroomed
Banned
whats the best band just for sleeping?
I want something that will wake me up in a light cycle so I don't feel groggy
I want something that will wake me up in a light cycle so I don't feel groggy
My Name Is Luke
Member
I've never been too into the idea of these but man, that Withings watch in the OP is definitely catching my attention in a way that I didn't expect.
Kanhir
Member
Fitbit Charge HR here. I've seen it get some slack online for not tracking heart rate accurately, but my spot testing always has it bang on.
My only problems with it are:
- I'm a very heavy sleeper, so its vibrate-to-wake doesn't even stir me.
- The 5-day battery life thing is a blatant lie. I get 2 days max before a charge. Charge time is impressively fast, though!
My only problems with it are:
- I'm a very heavy sleeper, so its vibrate-to-wake doesn't even stir me.
- The 5-day battery life thing is a blatant lie. I get 2 days max before a charge. Charge time is impressively fast, though!
Do you have all day sync on? Turning that off will instantly improve battery life.
I would definitely do the up3 but the reviews keep mentioning a poor clasp system that causes it to fall off. It was also pretty faulty initially though it's improved with the latest firmware. Really only the clasp system is holding me back from going that route.
mdsfx
Member
Is it fully functional by itself or does it need to be synced to a smart phone?
TarpitCarnivore
Member
All the optical units are going to be hit or miss. If you prefer a watch option I'd go for a Polar simply because of their history in the HR market.
It's hard to recommend if you aren't going to be using it with a smartphone.
For one, it doesn't come with a usb dongle to sync to pc. I believe you have to buy from fitbit separately. The blaze will sync data to pc via it's charge cable...but plugging the thing in daily to send data will be annoying.
Secondly, gps functions on the Blaze utilize your smartphone gps so no smartphone, no gps.
Kanhir
Member
Ah, cheers. I left all-day sync on just to avoid me forgetting to sync manually, but I check it every evening anyway, so I guess there's no point!
(Maybe this'll improve my phone's battery life too.)
thechristoph
Sir!
The missus has a Fitbit Charge HR. Reviews and such say it has a five-day lifespan, but she ends up having to charge it every night. That's a bummer because she's missing out on the sleep tracking. We've already exchange it once and the second one is the same deal. Research says to make sure that heart rate tracking is set to AUTO instead of ON, and it is. Does anyone have experience with this issue?
mdsfx
Member
Oh yikes. OK good to know. Thank you
I like not relying on my phone all the time. The Tom Tom multisport can be used standalone and then later sync to your phone.
I've got a FitBit Flex I got on discount through work, which is probably the only way I'd buy something like it. Super basic, but mostly reliable for the few years I've owned it. Only major issue is that the thing failed on me after I had rinsed it off under cold water. Full replacement came in the mail for free.
I'd like to bump up to something more robust in the near future and would probably end up going in the direction of the MS Band 2 as more of a fitness/tech wearable instead of a solely fitness related one.
I'd like to bump up to something more robust in the near future and would probably end up going in the direction of the MS Band 2 as more of a fitness/tech wearable instead of a solely fitness related one.
They added a locking mechanism to it. It's better now.
Ah damn. That's awesome. Crap. Making the decision tough!
Luschient
Member
Loved my Vivosmart, wore it almost a year. Recently the "screen" seems to be eroding or something. The LEDs are slowly being covered by something black inside. It's strange and I'm not sure what it is but the bottom part of my messages get cut off on the device from this stuff.
Currently deciding if I want to buy another one or give the Apple Watch Sport a try.
Got the Shakes
Member
I have a Vivoactive HR on order, but no firm date as to when I'll receive it. I actually have an Apple Watch now, but decided to go the Garmin route because of sleep tracking and the built in GPS for things like running and golf. Plus it does all the notifications on your wrist like an Apple Watch does. Seems like a damn good package for $250.
The more I read, the more it feels like this is definitely geared towards the hardcore crowd. I dont consider myself that yet but I hope to be someday. Just not sure if its worth the hassle to make the switch yet simce I did just get a Blaze.
One thing I dont like about it is the thickness. Id love to see comparison pics between it and the Blaze but, from the Vivoactive HRs promo phots, it looks to be much thicker. One thing I love about the Blaze so far is that its relatively thin.
DurielBlack
Member
I like my FitBit Charge HR. Lost a good bit of weight since I got it. About 15 lbs.
If you take advantage of the food tracker and actually wear the thing, it helps keep you responsible.
Only problem I have is the band is bubbling/peeling. Doesn't seem to be coming completely apart but doesn't look all that great either. No big deal to me.
I've gained some of that weight back because I got dumped into working 3rd shift until we get laid off work in a couple months. Hard to get my daily steps in when its always cold and dark outside nuking my desire/ability to take daily walks. Also I work longer hours so my work-days consist of sleeping, then getting up in time to go to work. It tough getting into the gym 3 days a week as well, but I still make the effort. Once I get a new job with normal human hours I'll get back into the swing of things.
If you take advantage of the food tracker and actually wear the thing, it helps keep you responsible.
Only problem I have is the band is bubbling/peeling. Doesn't seem to be coming completely apart but doesn't look all that great either. No big deal to me.
I've gained some of that weight back because I got dumped into working 3rd shift until we get laid off work in a couple months. Hard to get my daily steps in when its always cold and dark outside nuking my desire/ability to take daily walks. Also I work longer hours so my work-days consist of sleeping, then getting up in time to go to work. It tough getting into the gym 3 days a week as well, but I still make the effort. Once I get a new job with normal human hours I'll get back into the swing of things.
Got the Shakes
Member
For me it mostly about it being a tracker with the added benefit of being able to have a golf GPS on my wrist with needing it tethered to a phone for GPS functions. It does look think, but I've been using an Apple Watch which isn't too thin either.
Head of Vengarl
Banned
My mom got a Fitbit and gave me her old Jawbone UP band. I use it to track my sleep patterns. This week it says I've been waking up around 3am for half an hour. I have no recollection of this. It's kinda freaking me out; I hope I'm not sleep walking...
Yeah, the golf stuff sounds great. If I was a golfer, Id be all over that.
They packed a lot of nice features into the device. Thats a big selling point.
GPS stuff is something that I rarely use as I typically walk on tracks with marked mileage and whatnot but I was hoping to branch out a little and start doing new stuff this spring. Stuff where a GPS would be handy.
The things Im reading about the Blaze and its "connected gps" arent so great. Some people are reporting pretty large milage discrepancies and thats turning me off from it despite not being directly affected by it...yet.
I currently cant walk but Im dying to get out there ASAP to try it out and see if Im affected by the innaccurate GPS too.
Hopefully something like that is fixable via a firmware upgrade. I really dont care where the GPS is located as long as its accurate.
Yes. Its comfy as hell. I dont even realize Im wearing in half the time. The face is large but its not terribly thick and hasnt really gotten in the way yet. I actually think the device as whole looks smaller in person than it did in pictures.
Its really easy to use so far too. Very sleek, bright, easy to read screen. Cant wait to try out some workouts on it soon.
One issue I have is the touchscreen can be finicky when I tap it on. My Flex was the same way with taps. I dont know why that is but I just use the button on the side and Im fine with that.
Welp, I'm ditching my Apple Watch for Fitbit Blaze for now, but future watchOS revisions could change that.
Here's what I like:
Steps, Heart Rate, Calories Burned all show up instantly.
Raising your wrist shows the display faster than AW
It's super light
iMessage notifications work perfectly. You can't respond on the watch but I never wanted to.
Battery is a beast so far
Here's what I like:
Steps, Heart Rate, Calories Burned all show up instantly.
Raising your wrist shows the display faster than AW
It's super light
iMessage notifications work perfectly. You can't respond on the watch but I never wanted to.
Battery is a beast so far
I dont have a smart watch to compare it to but the more I wear mine, the more I like it. Im just finding myself impressed with the general design and smoothness of it all.
cyberheater
PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 Xbone PS4 PS4
Yeah I've got one as well. Its really great at motivating me to walk 10,000 steps a day. I've lost over a stone since Xmas.
It definitely helped me narrow down my options.I really appreciate the steel and gorilla glass on the Blaze. Makes me feel a bit better about its durability in the long run.
Was thinking about switching bands out but the rubber is probably best for sweat/dirt so I dont know. Maybe Ill grab another band to use on the weekends or something.
Any get the leather or steel bands?
Was thinking about switching bands out but the rubber is probably best for sweat/dirt so I dont know. Maybe Ill grab another band to use on the weekends or something.
Any get the leather or steel bands?
I bought the steel band. I'm sure I could have bought a regular band but unwanted another ring to put it in.
Its really nice.
I have the vivosmart hr and i really like it. It does everything my old fitbit did but i can see when the train it coming, who send me a message, and how long until uber arrives without taking out my phone. I charge it once a week and it is good to go.
Corran Horn
May the Schwartz be with you
Mine peels like a mother fucker. I use krazy glue to fix it but this thing looks horrible now lol. But it still works so I guess that's a plus.
Its a little pricey for me right now but I do hope to get it eventually. Maybe there will be a sale sometime.
I saw that there are some 3rd party bands that fit the Blaze too so I might check one of them out sometime. Theyre cheap so I dont expect much.
A lot of people seem to use and like My Fitness Pal. I dabbled with it some and it is good but I didnt like using two different apps for essentially the same thing...especially since the Fitbit app alone does mostly anything I want anyways.
As far as nutrition tacking goes, there is a food log built right into the Fitbit app, complete with calories and other nutrition info. You can also scan the barcodes on whatever youre eating for a quick way to enter data or manually enter it all yourself.
My Fitness Pal does all of this too.
That is awesome. Theres a hefty amount of features for such a nice price.
I just ordered a Fitbit Charge HR with some leftover Amazon vouchers from Xmas. I'm getting married in October and although I do a lot of cycling, I'd like to get a it more in shape so I'm hoping that wearing it will be a constant reminder to get my buns into gear and actually get fit!
Thanks Salaadin.
I just did a mile on my treadmill, according to its display. But the Charge HR is showing only .65 miles. I have set my walking stride length through the Fitbit website but have had trouble getting a consistent running stride. I've left that at 0 so Fitbit does the calculations. I wouldn't think the automatic calculation would be so far off that I'd lose nearly 2/5 of a mile. Is this a common thing? Could it be my treadmill is off?
It also did not recognize the workout. I was jogging for 10 minutes. The app says it auto detects activities over 7 minutes duration.
Nevermind, it's activities over 15 minutes. I don't know why I thought 7.
I just did a mile on my treadmill, according to its display. But the Charge HR is showing only .65 miles. I have set my walking stride length through the Fitbit website but have had trouble getting a consistent running stride. I've left that at 0 so Fitbit does the calculations. I wouldn't think the automatic calculation would be so far off that I'd lose nearly 2/5 of a mile. Is this a common thing? Could it be my treadmill is off?
It also did not recognize the workout. I was jogging for 10 minutes. The app says it auto detects activities over 7 minutes duration.
Nevermind, it's activities over 15 minutes. I don't know why I thought 7.
30yearsofhurt
Member
Could be the treadmill is in km?
But i would take the treadmill measure over a watch/tracker. On the road i would trust a GPS watch over an accelerometer tracker. Accelerometers are really only good for measuring steps.
I would just use it for measuring non-exercise activity and exercise HR.
If you get a GPS watch you're sorted. Alternatively you can use the Strava app on a smartphone with GPS stuffed in a tool bottle. You can then use a HRM that can connect up with the Strava app to link it with your route.
Strava is great for mapping your ride and plotting it with your HR.
As a pure fitness tracker? Yeah, I'd say the Surge, Microsoft Band 2, or the upcoming Garmin Vivoactive HR are all better.
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2016/02/apple-watch-review.html#summary
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/product-comparison-calculator?type=watch&ids=38429,56799,55992#results
30yearsofhurt
Member
+1 on the Vivoactive HR. No idea when it comes out but it looks like it does almost everything.
Edit: rumours are April for the vivoactive HR.
Got the Shakes
Member
I've pre-ordered one, but have no release date. I saw someone from Garmin reply to someone's question on Facebook that they should be out end of March, I've heard April, and I've seen a few retailers with an expected date of May.
So question- as someone who sits/stands at desk all day and works from home I have always wondered if a calorie estimates are accurate- will a Charge HR actually give me a close to accurate daily calorie count?
I wear a strap when doing yoga and even lifting but have always wondered.
I wear a strap when doing yoga and even lifting but have always wondered.
I'm no doctor but a wrist based 24/7 hr monitor would work just as good as a chest based one for most activities today.
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