Fitbit Flex vs. One Review

luckydays27

I do think the calculations that FitBit uses are wrong in the grand scheme of things... because from what I can tell they use a daily average to predict the rest of your day. But I think they should break the day up into sections, and then use those section averages to predict. I can't tell you how many times I have earned extra calories early in the day, only to watch them run down close to zero, to zero or below because I'm not doing jack in the evenings. That's a flaw, and I sent them an email about it. But it's not a deal breaker by any means. Just be aware that if you earn extra calories early in the day, don't eat them all up if you are just going to sit around at night. You may end up going negative if you do that.

Make sure that you are set to sedentary in the food section under Change your Daily Calorie Estimate Setting instead of personalized. Sedentary starts you out low and allows you to earn more as you are active in the day. Once you sync up, it then continues to increase your cals burned/intake at the sedentary pace. If you are active it increased your cal burn/intake accordingly.

04ward

I love my Fitbit One and LIKE that I can look at the display throughout the day to check my progress instead of always logging to the site! If anyone is interested in purchasing any of the Fitbit products, go to this Groupon link http://www.groupon.com/deals/brookstone-2-atlanta and buy the Brookstone Coupon "$25 for $50 value". Then when you go to the Brookstone site, you can apply the groupon as a gift card when you check out and get $50 off the price. Also, make sure you enter the Promo Code on the Brookstone site of "20GIFT" and it takes ANOTHER $20 off!

I just bought two this way to use as giveaways for a Fitness program and with Tax and Shipping I had out of pocket of $46.51 for the Fitbit One and only $22.92 for a Fitbit Zip!

04ward

I do think the calculations that FitBit uses are wrong in the grand scheme of things... because from what I can tell they use a daily average to predict the rest of your day. But I think they should break the day up into sections, and then use those section averages to predict. I can't tell you how many times I have earned extra calories early in the day, only to watch them run down close to zero, to zero or below because I'm not doing jack in the evenings. That's a flaw, and I sent them an email about it. But it's not a deal breaker by any means. Just be aware that if you earn extra calories early in the day, don't eat them all up if you are just going to sit around at night. You may end up going negative if you do that.

Make sure that you are set to sedentary in the food section under Change your Daily Calorie Estimate Setting instead of personalized. Sedentary starts you out low and allows you to earn more as you are active in the day. Once you sync up, it then continues to increase your cals burned/intake at the sedentary pace. If you are active it increased your cal burn/intake accordingly.

I set mine on Personalized. I tried the sedentary but I work a lot of night shifts at my restaurant and we would have a really busy night and at 11:00, it would show I was WAY behind on eating calories. By setting on personalized, it takes an average of what my past history was and somewhat guesses what I need to eat for the day and if you swipe to the second screen of that section of the site, it shows actual calories burned and eaten so it shows you exactly where you are at that particular point.

swfoster

Thank you!! I have been trying to decide which one to get. I think I will go with the One as well.

C00lc0le

Thanks so much for this comparison. The button fell out of my One and since I bought it from Best Buy I was going to exchange it for the Flex; however, after reading this, I'm just going to swap the One instead.
- I'm not a fan of wearing anything on my wrists.
- I'd prefer the more accurate calorie count.
- I had a Nike+ Fuelband and didn't care for it being on my wrist and it seemed to greatly over-exaggerate the effectiveness of my activity. (Sounds like the Flex will have the same issues).

aoifehendriks

Hello! Well I've just bought my Fitbit One a few days ago. I thought I'd post a couple of things I'd found! Firstly I find it very accurate with steps. I did a few trials of counting my steps while walking and found it accurate to one or two steps but most times absolutely bang on so that's really great. It also is accurate with kilometers to my RunKeeper so very happy with all that. Also driving has been no problem and it has so far not logged any extra steps even on bumpier roads (but I live in Holland and even in the countryside here the roads are never that bumpy!) Going on holiday to the west of Ireland soon so we'll see!!!! I've had no problem with the clip as has ben reported. I wear it on the front of my bra and it might as well be superglued there! It's a big pull to get it off at night! The only amusing thing is my husband laughing as I peer down my top at intervals to check it while I was doing the counting/ driving tests......! I was fascinated by the Flex but as I have a few Border Collies my day involves a LOT of walking and doggy activities and I was worried that the Flex would misread due to holding dog leads or throwing frisbees, playing tug, using hand signals for the dogs and the general 5 hours at least of doggyness a day. The Fitbit one has been great for all this. I do however use MFP for foods etc as I have been using it a long time and just really didn't want to change. I can completely recommend it for all this.

The problem is the sleep thing. Okay, so I didn't buy it for the sleep thing but I thought that would be really nice to see. I am a poor sleeper. I take a long time to fall asleep and wake up a lot during the night. Lots of things wake me up (any outside noise etc) and in that I include the dogs who all have their own "thing" to freak out about. One is terrified of thunderstorms, one curtains flapping in an open window in wind, one the postman opening the gate too loudly and another the fighter jets practicing maneuvers. Well this week we've had it all.... I put my Fitbit in it's pouch and settled down to sleep. I know it takes me a long time to get to sleep. I can be lying in bed for up to an hour, glance at the clock and see the time. Fitbit told me I went to sleep in 5 mins. Hmmmmm.... I think not..... When I try to go to sleep I try to relax and not flail my arms about wildly. So first thing I was logged as asleep over 55 mins before I actually was. As a test I was watching my awake/ asleep times for the past few nights. When I actually have to physically get up out of bed to do something like close a window or tell a dog to go to their "safe place" (the puppies are still a nightmare!) Fitbit acknowledges I am awake. On one particular night/ morning I was woken up 5 times. Once I had to get out of bed to close a window. The other times I had to verbally correct a dog but stayed in bed. One time it took me an hour and 15 mins at least to get back to sleep. The others maybe 15 mins to half an hour. I know it was actually longer but that was the last time I noticed at the clock. Fitbit told me I had woken once (the time I got out of bed and the other times I was "restless" for about a minute. I was in bed for 9 hrs and 16 mins. According to Fitbit I had a blissful 9hrs and 8 mins slumber with a bit of restlessness. With my eyes on a clock I had at most 6 hours and 15 mins sleep. As I mentioned I do not flail my arms around when awake in bed so it picked up nothing. I will not be using the sleep function anymore but I dearly wish I could turn that damn stopwatch into an activity tracker so I could hit it when I take off at an agility course or a frisbee long distance event and track the time of that properly while I'm running around like a fool! In those situations the stopwatch would be great, even to track my course times. It would be lovely on the website to disable this as a useless sleep tracker and use it for something that we be of benefit to me! Also the tracker resets at midnight every night. I am never in bed by midnight as I have to work with companies from abroad and am often awake till 5am here. Pity you can't set your own day set at your bedtime.... Maybe I should have just bought a more basic pedometer!

Anyway, enough of that. I didn't buy it as a sleep tracker (luckily) but if any of you are basing your decision for purchase on this function then really don't!!! I am a bit sad because I was quite taken with the idea of the function. Other than that for day to day doggy stuff for doggy people then it's great. It also helps me track my 12 year old doggy lady and her fitness as she does what I do so I can keep her going on her "elderly lady fitness"!

luckydays27

You can use the sleep feature to track timed activities. Just push the button when you start and end. Go to the fitbit site and categorize that activity.

I dont use the sleep feature anymore either. I am a great sleeper and always have been. I know that I go to sleep in 10 mins or less (usually less than 5) and will sleep soundly for the night.

Some people call it a glorified pedometer and I can see their point but the syncing feature and estimating cals burned for the day makes this thing the bomb for me.

*****my one month update with using the One****
I love my fitbit. I still wear it everyday and would imediately go buy another should I ever lose it or it breaks. I still use my HRM for fitness as I do circuit training, weight training and some cycling so the fitbit cant really measure these activities well.

I have found that I am far more sedentary than I ever thought most days so having the One sync with MFP has really helped me keep my cals to eat in check.

I started with the One around May 10th at 193 lbs. Its been about 6 weeks and I am at 185. That's 8 lbs in 6 weeks and I could not be happier. I am eating more which, IMHO, has been the key to my weight loss so far.

I have been so happy with it that I bought my fiance and my sister one.

My only tip is that for women who wear this, to avoid the fitbit falling out of the case, wear it clipped to your bra in the center but wear the fitbit display is actually between your bra and your skin. The thing cant fall out since its wedged in there. For guys, my finance wears his on the waste band of his underwear also facing in so the display is touching his skin.

lewkowicz

LOVE this very thorough review - I just received the One yesterday and then decided to look at the reviews (backwards, yes, but that's how I live my life!). You did a great job of conducting a mini-research project, comparing the results, and offering hypotheses as to why the One and Flex gave different data. I would prefer to underestimate than overestimate my activity levels, and I loved your data. Makes me feel great that I bought the One (I was also surprised with the sleep feature - I've been having sleep issues lately, and it's giving great details).

Thank you.

Dlacenere

Wow, awesome comparison - thanks! I have used a one since October and for Mother's Day my husband got me a flex. I wore them both for two days and found the same thing, the flex gave me more steps than the one and thus a higher calorie burn even when I counted my steps, the one was correct and the flex was high, so I returned the flex and still am in love with fitbit one.

BobOki

Not going to go through all the posts, but please keep in mind there are multiple settings, including sensitivity you can set on the flex, please try them and review again!
Great review btw.

Debby0904

Agreed. Great review. I own the flex and agree if you set it up logically. However, one needs to do the following to reduce sensitivity. Wear on the non dominant wrist and have it set in the app to dominant. If anything, I am below steps taken now as I see on my phone as I move when I tested. Hope this helps.

FightingFox

I washed my Fitbit One the very first time I wore it. It was the black one, clipped to my black running shorts, I forgot about it, and didn't see it when I tossed it in the wash. Couldn't get it to work after that. I am in communication w/Fitbit on whether I can get a replacement or not. I HOPE SO!!!!!!

dcmennealy

For what it is worth, I went to see if there was any comment from fit bit about this. Here's what they had on the site:

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Why is my Flex step count different than my count on other Fitbit products?

Flex has been tested extensively against our clip-based devices like the Fitbit One and Fitbit Zip. That said, because Flex is specifically designed for your wrist, if you move your body a lot and not your arms (or vice versa), you may get a slight difference in activity than you would see on your clip-based trackers. Additionally, since you’re more likely to wear Flex 24/7, you may count a few more steps.
This is no different than any wrist-based tracker on the market. For most people, there may be no difference at all between clip and wrist based trackers or it may be within a few percentage points difference. That said, if you have a lifestyle where you move your hands a lot such as playing the drums everyday, you may see a few extra steps on your Flex as we do want to give you credit for this activity.

Why do I get extra steps sometimes?

Flex is a motion sensor on your wrist. There are many instances where your hands may be moving, but your body may not be, such as playing the drums, cooking, or even burping a baby. Flex may count some extra steps here and there to give you credit when it thinks you are active.
Don’t forget, it’s the trends that matter the most in achieving your health and fitness goals.

Will Flex count steps when I’m pushing a stroller or a shopping cart?

Flex will count your steps when you are pushing a stroller or a shopping cart as we do want to give you credit for this activity. That said, because your hands are not moving, your step count may be a bit lower during this activity.
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I decided to get the flex because I can get credit for more activity. Not all calories we expend comes from walking. Even if the steps aren't 100% accurate, I think that the calories can be close to what I burn. It is though I have a tracker for upper and lower body. Also, wearing a flex is like wearing a watch, I often forget it is there.

danizzzle

I had Fitbit Flex for about 5 days now and during this time frame I wore my old Fitbit Ultra and Fitbit Flex together to find if there would be any discrepancy.

Discrepancy #1 from jog using kangoo jumps:

Discrepancy #2 from walking:

Discrepancy #3 from 1 hour of Turbo Kickboxing Class:

I also noticed that I get much less steps on Fitbit Flex throughout the day. I think Fitbit that clips onto your torso simply logs the information more accurately. I'm going to exchange my Fitbit Flex with Fitbit One.

endo2k6

Thank you so much!!! I had the flex for a week before returning it because I felt like it was just making up steps. I love to talk with my arms I guess you would say so wearing the flex i wonder is this accurate? and when I fell asleep with out turning on sleep mode it told me i took 500 steps in my sleep LOL. So unless I'm sleeping walking this will not do. but after returning it I still missed all the tracking info so tired the Jawbone UP and the counts stayed the same so I gave up on the bands. After reading ur review I will now try the one and hope it's what i'm looking for

GKitty67

Very helpful--thanks! I've had a Flex for about a week-and-a-half, now, and have found it to be a nifty little gadget... but was unlucky enough to get one with a bum battery. (Each battery charge has lasted anywhere from 19 hours to 35 hours, that's it.) So, after going back and forth with tech support for a few days, they told me to return it to the store and get a replacement. That got me thinking, though--maybe the One would be a better choice? Personally, I really like the sporty-jewelry aesthetic of the Flex, but as someone who can't live without her purse (or other gadgets, for that matter) AND is prone to wildly-swinging hand and arm gestures (teehee), I have to agree with your assessment that the One would probably be a better performer for me.

MissKylle

Thank you! I've now decided to buy Fitbit One instead of Flex, and that's a great idea cause I hate wristbands

robinrsimmons428

A couple coworkers of mine had the Flex on and I was thinking the same thing. Why on the wrist? We use our arms and hands way more then we do our legs especially if you are at a desk job. And think if you are typing I am sure it would be calculating every key as a step. Thanks for posting. I just stick with my HRM .

gfroniewski

Agreed. Great review. I own the flex and agree if you set it up logically. However, one needs to do the following to reduce sensitivity. Wear on the non dominant wrist and have it set in the app to dominant. If anything, I am below steps taken now as I see on my phone as I move when I tested. Hope this helps.

Please take this advice! It kills me to see people pass over the Flex because they don't realize they have settings they need to configure. I have mine on my non-dominant hand with the dominant setting turned on as described.

Also, the Flex calculating wrist movement as steps doesn't happen as you guys are describing. I have tested it extensively myself. I use a drum machine to produce music and the worst that ever happens is the status gets checked or it goes into sleep mode from tapping on the machine. Never steps though.

danizzzle

Honestly in terms of getting you to move more, I think both Fitbit Flex and Fitbit One accomplishes this. Ultimately it really depends on what you're looking for in a tracker. Here are my pros and cons:

[Fitbit Flex]
Pros:
- Waterproof
- Wear all the time without worrying about breaking it or losing it

Cons:
- No display, can only get data by syncing
- Sensitivity on the tap sucks (I had hard time activating/deactivating sleep mode)
- There is water residue that built inside the band (though tracker should be safe considering they are waterproof)
- Seems to be less accurate than torso clipping trackers
- No altimeter
- Band seem to wear off easily if you frequently take the tracker out of the band

[Fitbit Ultra or device that clips onto your torso]

Pros:
- Display that shows your steps
- altimeter
- More accurate than wrist trackers

Cons:
- Not waterproof (I've killed my Ultra before with my sweat :P)
- Easy to lose (I've lost one previously and I have no idea how... now I have pedometer strap on it)
- Easy to forget to put it on
- Easy to forget to take it off before laundry (washing it will break it)

So I was going to switch to Fitbit One but my coworker told me about Withings Pulse which is a tracker similar to Fitbit One. I picked it up today so I'm going to give this a test ride.