FitBit Force or Jawbone Up

whitebalance

I just got the Fitbit force as a gift and I have the iPhone 4 and the app is not give me my device or the pink icon the instructions keep telling me to push. It's also not showing up in my Bluetooth menu as connected. Anyone else having connection issues with the IOS app

You need iOS 6 or higher to sync with any BLE (Bluetooth low energy) device. BLE devices don't show up in your Bluetooth menu. I don't believe the iPhone 4 is compatible. See http://www.fitbit.com/devices

Dianemarie65

My husband and I currently have the Fitbit Flex. I would go with the Fitbit force to try out the new watch it has to offer if you like the idea of wearing it around your wrist.

Warchortle

Spending a lot of money on a device that can only guestimate calories burned is not worth in my opinion

Healthy_4_Life2

Bump for later.

WalkingAlong

Spending a lot of money on a device that can only guestimate calories burned is not worth in my opinion

Depends on how much is a "a lot of money" to each of us and how much we want a better guesstimate than "lightly active" vs. "sedentary", etc.

A lot of of people don't use it as much for the guesstimate as enjoying watching something increase as they become more active. It's good for goal-oriented people who know the scale is a lousy judge.

kulmer59

This is about the UP, not the UP24. And the UP has compatibility for iOS and Android

scraphpy32

I find the Force bulky. It's extremely hard to fasten. Extremely. There is some weird hack to put the ends in warm water, but I don't want to have to do that every time nor is it always feasible. It gave me a weird rash (on both wrists) that other's have gotten and think is a chemical burn. 3 weeks and still not close to healed. I also don't trust it's accuracy--on any of it, steps taken, flights climbed, and the sleep tracking. I'm definitely looking for something better. Plus, if you are buying this for the watch aspect--it only stays on for a few seconds after you push the button, so it's not a great replacement for a watch.

arijaycomet

If you ask me, the Fitbit Force is the best product on the market. Jawbone UP24 is unreliable (I've had countless friends return theirs or have to get replacements) (the only friend with a Fitbit issue is rough on his Flex and needed a new band, which was cheap)

My review/blog about why I chose the Fitbit Force:
http://arijaycomet.com/2013/12/05/counterpoint-perspective-other-activity-trackers/

And a comparison to the Polar Loop:
http://arijaycomet.com/2013/12/10/battle-fitbit-force-vs-polar-loop/

And some discussions about accuracy (you'll be surprised what I found)
http://arijaycomet.com/2013/12/11/caloric-burn-comparing-heart-rate-monitors-to-activity-trackers/

If you want to track your ACTUAL caloric burn daily instead of guessing BMR and other data from MFP I really suggest an activity tracker. Even if you just used it to log steps and still manually enter data for exercise it is GREAT!

ericfm160

I have been using the UP24 for a little over a week. It sync's seemlessly with my iPhone 4s and even does some coordination with myfitnesspal, which I am using to track food and exercise.

I would REALLY like to have a band that would also read pulse/heart rate. I understand the Basic B1 does that, but it is large and clunky (and more expensive).

Does anyone know of a heart rate device, which is not a chest strap?

Amiwil

I have been using the UP24 for a little over a week. It sync's seemlessly with my iPhone 4s and even does some coordination with myfitnesspal, which I am using to track food and exercise.

I would REALLY like to have a band that would also read pulse/heart rate. I understand the Basic B1 does that, but it is large and clunky (and more expensive).

Does anyone know of a heart rate device, which is not a chest strap?

I agree! I was looking at bodymedia but no one has commented on it. I want a HRM as well.

ebayaddict0127

I just bought my husband the FitBit Flex. I believe it was the newest version before the Force came out. He seems to really like it. I found reviews were actually better for the Flex than Force, but it's hard to say.

WalkingAlong

I have been using the UP24 for a little over a week. It sync's seemlessly with my iPhone 4s and even does some coordination with myfitnesspal, which I am using to track food and exercise.

I would REALLY like to have a band that would also read pulse/heart rate. I understand the Basic B1 does that, but it is large and clunky (and more expensive).

Does anyone know of a heart rate device, which is not a chest strap?

The Withings Pulse does spot heart rate checks. But if you want to estimate workout calories, you need a chest strap.

editorgrrl

I have a Fitbit Flex & a Jawbone UP. I much prefer the Jawbone app. It has tons of customizable charts and a more robust social component. It offers daily insights (w/ interpretations of your data) and challenges you to take more steps today or go to bed earlier tonight.

Fitbit has better customer service and more partner apps. (But both sync w/ MFP.) and Fibit makes other trackers that can be clipped to your clothing.

mrsdean4

I looked into both. The Jawbone Up is much better-looking to me, but it has no display, no web app (IIRC) and requires a manual synch. So to know where I'm at for the day I'd have to take it off, take a cap off, and plug it into my phone to synch, then read my data off the phone. I've had a Fitbit for years and it has wireless synching that's automatic and a display on the device, and both a mobile and web display. Both have vibrating alarms and both track sleep. I wore the Fitbit Flex for a day and the plastic wrist device thing isn't for me, at least not until they make them smaller and/or more attractive.

The new UP has automatic bluetooth syncing.


I loved my UP, but loved is he operative word. It worked fine for a couple months, then died. Looking into it, it's a very common issue. A lot of people are on their second, third, or even fourth UP band. The UP is a great tracker, but reliability is a serious concern.

I have had all versions of the fitbit (except the force) and the two jawbone UP units. The fitbits all worked great, the UP had to be replaced and the charging just was a pain for me, as was the app issues, so I sold it and got the Flex. I'm happy with the functionality of the flex but REALLY wish it had a display. I did see that there are some skin rash issues with the Force, and I am prone to such things, so I am waiting until they work that out.

editorgrrl

I'm on my 3rd Up, and waiting for my 3rd Flex to arrive. I bought them each in spring 2013, so the reliabilty's exactly the same in my case. As I said above, Fitbit's customer service was much better than Jawbone's.

Rebekah718

I have tried both. He great think about best buy is you can try an item for fourteen days and then return it. I tried the up it was good but I hated plugging it in all the time. I love the bit bit. Having a clock and it displays everything on the screen I live checking my progress through out the day. The alarm in the morning is great my husband loves me not having the alarm clock waking him up too.

Lilchamp

I bought an UP24 a couple of weeks ago and love, love, love it! I like the look of the actual bracelet, too. My friend has a nike fuelband (and loves it btw) and so I started looking at the different trackers out there. They seem to all be good. Just a matter of what you are personally looking for it to do. It seems pretty accurate to me. I take spin class twice a week so I will set the stopwatch for the duration and also will tie the tracker to my sneaker. After, I add the details on the app. It seems pretty consistent to me. I also like how it tracks my sleep. I am pretty much obsessed with it right now- I love looking at my stats and the trends, etc. I know previous versions of the UP band were not really good and there were a lot of problems with it. But I took a chance because I really like the design, app, etc. so far so good. I needed something to motivate me. We are having such a cold winter and I totally slacked off and lost sight of my goals. I saw weight creeping back on so I bought the tracker. In the two weeks I have had it I lost 4 1/2 pounds. I'm always trying to beat my step gol I set for myself. I really like it. And it has Bluetooth now so it syncs automatically..

swickizer

I am planning on buying the Jawbone UP 24 - I love the fact that it has an alarm clock that will wake you up during your lightest sleep so you aren't as groggy. Also just an FYI, Jawbone recently acquired Bodymedia, so I wouldn't be surprised if the next Jawbone UP generation has a HR monitor.

jennycina93

I have the Jawbone Up and have no complaints. I really like it and it seems very accurate for me. I have never tried a fitbit product so I cannot compare.

KDSnowden

The Garmin VivoFit tracks heartbeat when used with a monitor strap.