Fitbit? Are they worth it?

EleanorLynn1989 wrote: »

Only if you like wasting your money on a product with customer service that treats you like crap.

I haven't had any problems with their service. In fact, I lost my Flex shortly after getting one, and when I finally contacted them months later, they asked for my receipt and sent me a brand new one. I was floored.

whoisfriend wrote: »

EleanorLynn1989 wrote: »

Only if you like wasting your money on a product with customer service that treats you like crap.

I haven't had any problems with their service. In fact, I lost my Flex shortly after getting one, and when I finally contacted them months later, they asked for my receipt and sent me a brand new one. I was floored.

I as well as many other Fitbit users haven't been able to use ours for a week now because of a software glitch with Fitbit Connect and syncing issues. I'm about to throw mine in the trash.

I got the Charge a few weeks ago. I already have a Polar HRM, and wasn't really interested in the HR feature on the FitBit. So far I absolutely love it. I can sit at the computer for longer than I care to admit, and have actually had to delete a few sleep logs because it thought I was sleeping even though it was just me sitting at the computer not moving. That is eye opening actually seeing those chunks of time I should be doing something like moving! The challenges with friends (or even just by yourself to reach your daily goals) are motivating and seeing how everyone else is doing, getting cheered on or cheering on your friends is also fun. I always want to get my steps in and find myself chasing my dog around the living room in circles playing to get a few more in each night, just to see that higher number.

I also can't believe how much I missed wearing a watch. I haven't worn one regularly in nearly a decade, but find myself relying on the time (and date!) from it more and more in just these few weeks I've had it. Also, getting the vibrate and caller ID means I don't miss as many calls, and can make a quick decision on whether or not to stop what I'm doing and go get the phone depending on who's name shows up!

MrsGreco wrote: »

At the start of your workout you can put the device in "exercise mode" by holding down the button (it will vibrate) This will track steps, distance, cals burned & heart rate" So YES this will be beneficial to use during crossfit. You just probably won't be getting a lot of steps. But it will determine calories burned based off your heartrate.

So I'd assume you don't know much about crossfit?

The step count will be overestimate because it'll assume arm movements are steps, so that contribution fo calories expended will be wrong.

Basing calorie ehxpendirure estimates on HR assumes that HR is broadly constant and aerobic range. Crossfit sessions are rarely constant HR or consistently aerobic range.

Neither approach to approximating calorie expenditure will give an accurate figure.

i really love my HR Charge... and now got upgraded to Surge... so far loving both and kinda making my obsessed over it...

for me, its an overpriced gadget.

i wear it, but i dont care about steps or track anything on it.

BUMP

I have an old Fitbit Flex. I'd say if you're looking for something totally accurate that does more than motivate you, it's mostly not worth it. I use mine as motivation to move more, not to get exact measures. It's one thing to kinda sorta maybe know you're not really all that active, it's another thing to have a device / statistics presenting you with the cold facts. Doesn't work wonders but it's a little push.

Have had a Fitbit Charge HR since... april 2015 or so. Got it pretty soon after it entered the market. I wanted it to count "calories out" for me.

So I coupled my Fitbit with MFP, and I let it adjust my calorie goal all the time. In order to do that, it adds or subtracts a "fitbit adjustment" (appearing in the exercise calories segment) many times during the day. I just eat accordingly, which works fine for me after an initial phase of getting used to Fitbit moving my calorie goal around all the time.

And it works! Thanks to fitbit, over time, my weight does pretty much exactly what I program it to do in MFP. So fitbit's error can't be larger than 5% (about 100 kcal for me) or so. The only exception are rather special days - hiking in T-Shirt in bright sunlight that confuses the heart rate sensor a lot, for instance. Anyway, I am very happy that I can trust Fitbit's "calorie out" measurement. I honestly did not expect it to be *that* good, but it is. It is so good, I don't want to live without a competent tracker any more

As hinted above, the step tracking and heart rate sensing are not *always* spot on, especially during exercise, which makes it a sub-par exercise tracker. But I bought it for tracking my "calories out" 24/7, which it does amazingly well almost every day, so I can live with that.

Add to all this the educational effects. Using the app and the website, you really learn stuff about yourself.

With all that said, there's always room for improvement. Obviously, we want all tracking to be perfect. And longer battery life would be nice as well. And did I mention that a 24/7 tracker should be perfectly water proof, not just splash resistant? Also, I'd like to have a fitness tracker and capable smart watch in one device.

My verdict: I couldn't be happier and am looking forward to further improvements in the next generation of 24/7 trackers. IT'S WORTH EVERY PENNY.

I hate wearing things on my wrist and I wasn't fussed for a HR monitor, so I've got the One and I love the thing. I have a very sedentary desk job and it was frightening to realise just how few steps I took during the day. Now I make myself get up every hour and walk from one end of my building to the other and back again. Starting on the first floor and walking up to the third. If I do this eight times I can clock an additional 6,500 steps and 24 floors before going home.