Battle of the Fitbits (and other such devices)
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sheermomentum wrote: »What do you want it to do? Do you want to mainly track steps? Cardio exercise? Indoor? Outdoor? The functionality you want will determine the best choice....
Whoops, I probably should have talked about that. Mainly for things like steps, calories, distance, and intensity. I would like something that monitors heart rate, but if a chest strap is more accurate then I may look into getting one of those for that purpose. Basically I don't really care about stuff like GPS, caller ID, sleep tracking and those kinds of things.
Thank you to everyone for your replies so far!0 -
I like this topic..
I have ever owned a few of them.
- fitbit is good in the cheaper and simple range. The HR MODEL is cool but overall not that impressive. Works well with others and has its own scale (2nd best WiFi scale on market) best support team. Works with apple and Android.
Garmin vivoactive for sports and activity tracking all the way! Beware of garmin not playing well with others. It works with MFP. Things get frustrating very fast.
Withings activite pop most elegant and best looking plays well with others. Works with many partners.No battery charging for 8 months.
Works with withings scale probably best WiFi scale on the market. Works woth android and apple. There is also a $500 swiss made version available. (To much for me)
Any android user can download the withings app and use Google fit to record all daily steps, the app will upload all steps to MFP at least until Google fit starts talking to MFP directly.
- Fitbit best on price point.
- - Garmin best for sparts
- - best looking (overall my favorite) must try.
BTW I have owned all of the above except the fitbit aria scale..
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Have a Polar FT7 and totally happy with it. Doesn't count steps but is waterproof
And i have a Misfit Flash and for only $29.99 i was very pleased with the performance and the app. Simple and works always No problems with syncing and easy to set up. And also waterproof.
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Kimegatron wrote: »I have heard that the wrist wearing Fitbits calculate arm movements as steps. Is that true? I wanted to ask for one for Xmas or my birthday, but I don't want something that will be really inaccurate
Any method of measurement is going to have some inaccuracy. A torso mounted device like the Zip or One has to be more sensitive as the body moves less in movement, so may miss steps. A wrist mounted may measure arm movement as steps, or may miss steps if you're pushing a shopping trolley or the like.
You need to balance how the device measures with your lifestyle.0 -
I'd recommend the Vivoactive! I've compared it to Fitbit and the Gear Fit and it is very accurate on steps. It doesn't miss many or add more. GPS tracking is also very accurate. It's also compatible with chest heart rate monitors, which again are more accurate. I like that it looks like a watch instead of a bulky fitness band. Only thing I've had issues with is the Garmin Connect app. It's quirky at times. But the watch makes up for it.0
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sheermomentum wrote: »What do you want it to do? Do you want to mainly track steps? Cardio exercise? Indoor? Outdoor? The functionality you want will determine the best choice....
Whoops, I probably should have talked about that. Mainly for things like steps, calories, distance, and intensity. I would like something that monitors heart rate, but if a chest strap is more accurate then I may look into getting one of those for that purpose. Basically I don't really care about stuff like GPS, caller ID, sleep tracking and those kinds of things.
Thank you to everyone for your replies so far!
The heart rate monitor won't be useful unless you are doing some sort of cardio exercise that raises your heart rate. That might or might not include walking, but you might want to look into whether the model you buy counts steps or uses a HR-based calorie calculation while you're walking. The HR feature costs money, so why pay for what you won't use? GPS would be used to accurately calculate distance, if that's of interest to you. (It also costs money
). But it would only work if you are walking outdoors, not on a treadmill. Otherwise stride length is used to calculate distance, but you have to actually know your stride length and enter it into your device profile. (I haven't figured out how people accurately figure that out, but I guess they do.) Also, I have found that using arm movements to count steps is very inaccurate for me. I guess I move my arms alot while sitting down, or something. If you think that might be a concern, then device that you wear on your body instead of your wrist might be more accurate. 0 -
I originally bought a Misfit Flash. Nice and inexpensive. The band broke within a week and a half but customer support was good and they sent me two new bands. My major problems with it were inaccuracy (it registered time on my motorcycle as steps) and the watch function being a total PITA. I finally got a Garmin Vivofit2. I love it. I call it my nag because it has the move bar which lets you know when you've been inactive for too long and a beep that goes with it. It looks like a watch and is water resistant, which was a major consideration. I did have one problem but customer support was excellent in resolving it. I did not go for the more expensive Vivosmart as I don't need to know about every text/phone call.0
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I love my Charge HR. That being said, I've never used another brand to compare.0
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I have the vivosmart with a chest strap and I'm a fan. it motivates me to move more and gives me an accurate count of calories
the new vivosmart coming out will have a HRM built into the wristband. It is supposed to be pretty accurate as far as wrist mounted HRMs
if you aren't looking at all the smart phone alerts, consider a vivofit.
i chose the garmin products because they are waterproof instead of splash proof. and I think they look better too0 -
There are several good videos on YouTube that go through the pros and cons of different activity trackers. I found looking at these to be helpful when deciding which one to buy back in July. Since I was just starting to get active and wasn't sure how useful a tracker was going to be, I didn't want to spend a lot of money so I decided on the Jawbone UP Move. Coupled with MFP it's really helped me with my quest to become more active and lose weight. I may decide to invest in a higher grade tracker in the future when I start getting into some type of training. But for where I am now, the UP Move works for me. Here's a link to one video that provides a good review:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ7Lt7hlvAs0 -
sheermomentum wrote: »sheermomentum wrote: »What do you want it to do? Do you want to mainly track steps? Cardio exercise? Indoor? Outdoor? The functionality you want will determine the best choice....
Whoops, I probably should have talked about that. Mainly for things like steps, calories, distance, and intensity. I would like something that monitors heart rate, but if a chest strap is more accurate then I may look into getting one of those for that purpose. Basically I don't really care about stuff like GPS, caller ID, sleep tracking and those kinds of things.
Thank you to everyone for your replies so far!
The heart rate monitor won't be useful unless you are doing some sort of cardio exercise that raises your heart rate. That might or might not include walking, but you might want to look into whether the model you buy counts steps or uses a HR-based calorie calculation while you're walking. The HR feature costs money, so why pay for what you won't use? GPS would be used to accurately calculate distance, if that's of interest to you. (It also costs money ). But it would only work if you are walking outdoors, not on a treadmill. Otherwise stride length is used to calculate distance, but you have to actually know your stride length and enter it into your device profile. (I haven't figured out how people accurately figure that out, but I guess they do.) Also, I have found that using arm movements to count steps is very inaccurate for me. I guess I move my arms alot while sitting down, or something. If you think that might be a concern, then device that you wear on your body instead of your wrist might be more accurate.
Awesome, thank you for the info and feedback! I'm extremely new to any kind of activity tracker so thanks for getting into how some of that stuff works. It kind of flew over my head that GPS = calculating distance haha.0 -
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miztessbert wrote: »There are several good videos on YouTube that go through the pros and cons of different activity trackers. I found looking at these to be helpful when deciding which one to buy back in July. Since I was just starting to get active and wasn't sure how useful a tracker was going to be, I didn't want to spend a lot of money so I decided on the Jawbone UP Move. Coupled with MFP it's really helped me with my quest to become more active and lose weight. I may decide to invest in a higher grade tracker in the future when I start getting into some type of training. But for where I am now, the UP Move works for me. Here's a link to one video that provides a good review:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ7Lt7hlvAs
Thanks for the video!! Very helpful. I'll have to look through that guy's channel for more videos, too.0 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »
Ahhh okay, that would make sense. Thanks!0 -
Again, thank you to everyone who's replied so far and for all of your great feedback and advice!
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I have the Vivofit with HR and love it. More important than any of the individual differences between brands is the fact that for me, it is fun, and it increases my activity level. The HR monitor helps save my exercise that is not walk related as 'other activity' and I can look back and see how long I worked out.
All in all, well worth the cost.0 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »
I thought that the opposite was true. I thought in order of expected accuracy, it went 1. Power generation, 2. Heart Rate (tho better w/ VO2 max), 3. Time & Distance plus age & weight. But I could be wrong. If you have any references on that, I'd be interested...0 -
I used to use a Body Media armband and it helped me lose my weight. Upgraded to a Garmin VivoActive. It works great for me. What I like:
- Custom apps for workouts (indoor/outdoor walking, running, biking, swimming--it's waterproof).
- Different watch faces and apps you can download.
- The app store has more apps every time I check.
- HRM (chest strap).
- Great website interface and phone app.
- The nudge to move if I haven't in 45 minutes. My whole staff gets up now at meetings and we walk around the conference room until it says we cleared the "move" bar. They think it's hilarious and when I walk around the grounds/building because "the watch said I have to move" they comment on what a good example I'm setting and walk with me.
- I get a fireworks display (the watch face is full color) when I hit my step goal for the day.
- Tracks length and quality of sleep.
- Syncs with MFP.
- I get cell phone notifications on it (calls, texts, fb/twitter, etc). It's much more subtle to check my wrist during a meeting than to reach for my phone.
GREAT choice for me.
Here's a website I used to get me started and see what was out there:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404445,00.asp0 -
I have a Fitbit One and absolutely love it. I had a Flex, but didn't like having one on my wrist, so I switched to a One. What I like about Fitbit is that you can have challenges with other Fitbit friends. I'm in a Workweek hustle challenge every week, and it is very motivating.
At the end of the day, if motivation and more steps is your goal, you can't go wrong with any tracker. I've heard good and bad about all of them, Fitbit included (I did a lot of research before buying one).
My Fiitbit has been a HUGE help in my weightloss. I have it synced with MFP, and if I don't move enough, it takes calories away. So when that happens, I get moving.0 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »Kimegatron wrote: »I have heard that the wrist wearing Fitbits calculate arm movements as steps. Is that true? I wanted to ask for one for Xmas or my birthday, but I don't want something that will be really inaccurate
Any method of measurement is going to have some inaccuracy. A torso mounted device like the Zip or One has to be more sensitive as the body moves less in movement, so may miss steps. A wrist mounted may measure arm movement as steps, or may miss steps if you're pushing a shopping trolley or the like.
You need to balance how the device measures with your lifestyle.
I didn't think about a shopping cart... Maybe I can get a wrist band fitbit, and use that on my walks, and the zip for every day other stuff. Can you have 2 devices in use in one day, but at separate times?0
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