Bluetooth Enabled Activity Trackers

Tywhi3
Tywhi3 Posts: 8 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've seen these bluetooth enabled activity trackers all over the place: Jawbone Up, The Withings Pulse...

They're a little upwards of $120 (new from the site or a department store), and I just want to know if anyone actually uses any of these devices and if they're helpful. I love gadgets, and before I invest in such a gadget, I just want to know if it's any REAL use for weight loss and fitness.

These are the two specifically that I've been looking at:

Pulse
http://vitrine.withings.com/us/withings-pulse.html

UP
https://jawbone.com/up?gclid=CjgKEAjwtZucBRD77aiiq_v4xnASJABkAg8JSILFHuu68E1pfdPyCJKkdT1yNc9DnPisLXyI9ILMifD_BwE

Replies

  • Scott_2025
    Scott_2025 Posts: 201 Member
    My wife has a jawbone UP. She likes it. But she says I bought it for her so she would see how little she does..... LOL... But what she has learned, is that she is an Olympian at sleeping....

    It is a neat gadget. It tracks steps and sleep. I can't comment on the accuracy of steps, but my wife's step count does show at least relatively how active she is.
  • 0somuchbetter0
    0somuchbetter0 Posts: 1,335 Member
    Fitbit too. It's very accurate for counting steps, but I don't know about calorie burn. I always underestimate that to be safe.
  • rhoule76
    rhoule76 Posts: 217 Member
    I use a FitBit Flex for tracking steps and a use a Polar HRM. Both are Bluetooth devices. I don't have any experience with either device you are looking at but I think if it helps you accomplish your goal/s, then it's worth it.
  • FireOpalCO
    FireOpalCO Posts: 641 Member
    I have a FitBit Flex (they are under $100). I give it (and MFP) a great deal of the credit for me losing 19.5 pounds in 7 weeks.
  • Tywhi3
    Tywhi3 Posts: 8 Member
    Great. I started off looking for a simple pedometer, but of course now I want something "fancy". I'm going to look into the FitBit Flex as well since it's not going to cost me $130.
  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    I have the FitBit Zip. It was $60 at Target. The only difference between that and the flex is that you clip it on your clothes and it doesn't track sleep or stairs.

    Edit to fix a word.
  • rak173
    rak173 Posts: 105 Member
    I have a fitbit zip and got it for $50 off of Amazon. It clips onto your clothing, I wear it on my waist. It tracks your steps and links with MFP nicely. So far I have found the burn for my daily activity to be accurate, as I have been eating back 50-75% of those calories and am losing.
  • Tywhi3
    Tywhi3 Posts: 8 Member
    Thanks! I'm probably going to go ahead and get the flex because it seems to have fairly similar features to the UP without the price tag.
  • gspero72
    gspero72 Posts: 16 Member
    I use the fitbit flex, as does my wife, brother, his wife, my cousins, etc, etc. Seems fairly accurate, not very fancy so I only charge it once a week. Links directly to MFP so all the food / water / fitness tracking I do here transfers over and vice versa.

    I find that because I wear it every day, every where I go. Its a physical reminder of my commitment to being healthier, so when I reach for the cookies, I see it and it makes me think twice.

    No regrets with the purchase so far, even bought the Fitbit scale to track weight and BMI type stuff.

    Good luck

    Geo
  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,731 Member
    Pay attention to what kind of bluetooth the activity tracker uses, and what apps it will sync with. Some use only Bluetooth Smart, which is used by newer iPhones and very new Androids. Some, like the Garmin Vivofit, use ANT technology instead of Bluetooth, so it will work mainly with iPhone. A few work with regular Bluetooth and can be used with almost any smartphone.

    Fitbit, Pulse and the Bodymedia Fit band sync with MFP (not sure about Jawbone) Bodymedia uses oldschool Bluetooth, so you don't have to have a newer phone. Bodymedia also seems more accurate than the others since it uses 5 different sensors rather than just a pedometer.

    I tried the Fitbit Flex, Garmin Vivofit, and Polar Loop. All three were inaccurate, and didn't catch things like steps while pushing a shopping cart or carrying heavy items. It was disappointing to do a large grocery shopping trip only to be told by my fitness band that I had been sedentary for the last hour and needed to move. My Bodymedia doesn't have that problem, so it's the one I kept.

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