I see a lot adverts around and know that fitbits are popular.

I don’t quite get what they’re for though.

Sleep tracking? My body tells me when I’m tired – I don’t need a watch to tell me.

Step counter? Again, I know when I’ve not had any exercise or done enough by the way I feel.

Heart rate monitor? If you’re an athlete sure, but fit-bit’s etc are for the everyday person. Why would they want to know their heart rate?

If I’m missing the point I’d love to know. They intrigue me.

Cheers..

The people who I know that have them tend to know other people who have them and they use that as an incentive to try to outdo each other by setting daily/weekly targets.

You’re too awesome to own one.

Myself I use mine to record how far I walk per day as in reality I have no idea, it’s not for telling me when to go to sleep, I use it record certain walks for future events as it GPS tracks, it’s a watch, also a basic smart watcu and it monitors my average heart rate. It’s recorded my heart rate during a recent renal colic attack which for me is interesting to see.

What Bregante said

Mrs Binners and her mates have all got them and it’s competitive. They’ve all lost loads of weight, since they got them at new year as a result! Motivation innit?

They make more money for the manufacturer?

Mine is a watch which is a bit smart first and foremost.

It counts my steps but that does not make a lot of difference as the number of steps I take daily is very much out of my control; stuff needs doing and I keep on going until it’s done if that means I do 15000 or 30000 by the end of the day then so be it. It buzzes every now and again if I’ve been at my desk too long to nag me to get up and stretch my legs which I like. It monitors my heart rate and tells me my recent resting heart rate average – which is a good indicator of stress, illness and fatigue. It monitors my sleep – it does not tell me when to go to sleep but I quite like looking back to see the quality of sleep I’ve had which helps confirm how much my current stress levels are effecting me. At 44 it’s like having a tiny version of my mother on my wrist nagging me to look after myself.

Just after hip surgery last year when I had returned to work but was still very much on the mend it was invaluable to helping me to limit the maximum steps a day I was taking and preventing me over doing it.

So, although in danger of derailing the thread, what should I look at if I wanted something vaguely smart, with a bit of fitness tracking, and not remotely fussed about uploading my data to anywhere?

and not remotely fussed about uploading my data to anywhere?

What do you mean by uploading anywhere? Most of them sync to a cloud via your phone and use a phone app or a website to view the data. Without this the data is pretty bobbins.

Do you swim? Would you use it to track bike rides or runs or just your day to day wandering about? Makes a difference as to what to recommend.

Like Strava, for folk who don’t ride …. 😀

To count my calories so I don’t become an old fatty.

like Strava, for folk who don’t ride ….

Nonsense.

I got a vivoactive hr recently, sold my edge 520 for stupid money that more than paid for it. I used my 520 for riding, say 3 times a week, whereas I use the vivo as a watch, track gym sessions etc.

The mapping on the edge was shite, so never used it, and that was the only thing it has over the vivo.

I love the smart watch side of it too, can check messages when they come in when I’m at my desk, without the phone, which lives in the car at work (comah site, no phones allowed).

Brilliant bit of kit.

Sleep tracking? My body tells me when I’m tired – I don’t need a watch to tell me.

That’s not what a sleep tracker does 😉

Like Strava, for folk who don’t ride ….

We are the target market then! 😆

I love the smart watch side of it too, can check messages when they come in when I’m at my desk, without the phone, which lives in the car at work (comah site, no phones allowed).

Wondering if the security peeps have cottoned on to this yet. I know that sites I worked on this would be viewed as a direct comms link.

I have a Fenix 3 great bit of kit. Step count is of passing interest, I like the little buzz reminding to move if I’m too still at work.

Glancing at messages and the like in meetings is useful.

Sleep tracking is useful, shows the difference between deep and light sleep. Though not massively reliable as often sitting on the sofa seems to be tracked as sleep for me.

HR tracking is also useful and can see when tired / ill. Hopefully if I can shift this cold and get to do some proper training I may see a drop in resting HR.

Best bit for me is recording my commutes and quick local rides. No need for anything else. And it connects to my power meter. For proper rides where I want to check the data as I go I use an 820.

Use it everyday. Now thinking about getting rid of all but one ‘nice’ watch as they never get any wrist time

@fadda

Vivomove might be suitable. It’s a watch which syncs to your phone, and has a discreet move bar on the watch face. My bro has one and seems to like it.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/532348

I have the Vivoactive HR, but that has quite a few more whistles and bells. I made sure if I got a fitness tracker it would have GPS and be waterproof, Fitbit aren’t, so if I stopped using the steps stuff, then at least I would still be left with a useable device. Sold my 910XT and not regretted it yet.

Not a fan of the HR sensor bump tho.

I guess they are useful if you use them the right way to remind you/incentivise you to move and link with my fitness pal but last time I went to my parents my step mum had one on and as is the norm for her she barely left her chair or the house in the two days we were there so seemed utterly pointless for her!

Vivosmart HR here.
It’s what I want it to be, tells the time. Does activity, actually tells me how I slept not if I’m tired, links to my garmin bike computer for logging HR etc, controls the music on my phone and lets me know if that message was worth checking.

But agreed you are way too awesome to need one.

Anecdotally, the only people I know who have one are fatties. Presumably they have a feature that tells you the location of the nearest Gregg’s…

Sweet I must get that add on.

I was wavering but that’s me sold now

Quick question, if no one objects?

Mrs S wants one.

The Charge 2 seems to be the cheapest/smallest with an altimeter.
Take it this is essential if you want accurate, comparable data for hilly cycling sessions?

And how tough are they?
Scratch easily?

Ta!

I use a screen protector on my vivoactive HR for added protection. I’ve just noticed this am the protector has 2 cracks in it but appears the sscreen is fine, so just orderd new protectors.

Just a FYI. The Charge 2 is neither waterproof or has it’s own GPS chip (it uses your phone), if that’s a consideration.

As for scratching, I don’t think any of the trackers out there have special gorilla glass, or sapphire glass like the expensive Garmins, so maybe worth popping a protector on, or wearing the scratches with pride. My Vivoactive HR has a few chips on the body from knocking it on things, but then it is a bilt bulkier than the Charge 2. Screen is fine, tho.

Earn yourself some brownie points and get her a sapphire Fenix 5S 😉

https://buy.garmin.com/en-GB/GB/p/552237/pn/010-01685-13

Thanks folks.

The lack of waterproofing is a worry tbh.

Buuut, the step-daughters have both bought Fitbits, so I fear going off message would not be a wise move.

There’s always the Surge?

Water Resistance
Surge has been tested up to 5 ATM meaning it is sweat, rain and splash proof. However, the device is not swim proof. We also recommend taking Surge off before showering because, as with any wearable device, it’s best for your skin if the band stays dry and clean.

Which now I think about it, might be the same as the Charge 2, so probably be ok for just general use?

I was wish I was too awesome to own one. It’s the vivoactive hr that piqued my interest the most.

What is the sleep thing for then and how does the heart rate thing help if poorly? Is it a way of telling you you’re not fully recovered yet?

Jamie, I wouldn’t pay £200 for a plastic watch even if it gained me immortality.
🙂

The sleep monitor shows when you’re in a light or deep sleep so monitors your pattern to give idea how well you seelp, not sure how accurate it is as I don’t take a lot of notice. The being ill part isn’t exact science just monitoring your average heart rate.

Below you can see my HR increase due to renal colic, when it was at its worst and when the second episode started.

https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/03/garmin-sleep-automatic-detection.html

From my understanding sleep is a combination of HR and movement. It generally correlates with how I think I have slept. It does a mix of light and deep sleep so you can see if you were dozing or actually properly sleeping

They’re devices primarily intended to erode relationships and extract money from anxious, overweight people and they’re very good at it.

My missus has a fitbit* essentially it’s a pointless toy for her, it’s supposed to motivate an otherwise lazy person to get off FB and be “more active” by telling them if they’ve hit or missed arbitrary (self set) goals for movement.

It seems to only succeed at this pretty meagre task for a short period (maybe two weeks in any three months), and then normal service is resumed when she forgets to charge it…

Periodically she’ll be prompted by something to take up wearing the “bangle of shame” by some random event, a news piece on Brit’s becoming obese, or a comment from a tactless friend and will require “tech support” again. Whereupon muggins here has to reinstall an app, explain how to use it again and show her how to charge said device… Oh and ask every day of she’s done any exercise…

People who are genuinely interested in keeping track of specific sporting activities are probably better off buying dedicated devices (i.e a garmin edge, forerunner or similar running, riding, swimming trackers) and properly using the data… IMO.

*she actually has two as she lost and then found the first one after buying another…

People who are genuinely interested in keeping track of specific sporting activities are probably better off buying dedicated devices (i.e a garmin edge, forerunner or similar running, riding, swimming trackers) and properly using the data… IMO.

It’s also there to compliment those devices, as HRM it’s way less faff and hassle than a strap and it’s there all the time, they day monitoring and prompting can be useful – garmin tells me if I’m having an off day – based on my previous activities and the prompts are good for getting me away from my desk periodically during the day.

IMO

Quite.

You seem to have a rather low opinion of your wife. This may be the crux of the issue.

They are a tool. Like all tools they are open to misuse born of ignorance or lethargy and some will live in a dusty drawer. But then again a bad workman…….

People who are genuinely interested in keeping track of specific sporting activities are probably better off buying dedicated devices (i.e a garmin edge, forerunner or similar running, riding, swimming trackers) and properly using the data… IMO.

A forerunner is the same thing. 😆

You seem to have a rather low opinion of your wife.

Far from it, but she is a sucker for advertising, which is why the World has so many fitness trackers, and I am more realistic about her (relatively minor) flaws, but she puts up with me… My beef is with the devices not my missus.

She’s very happy when she’s being active and doing stuff. She’s also not someone who takes up and sticks at a given sport, I like cycling, that’s what I do. She’ll try anything, but if it’s not her bag she drops it pretty quickly.

I’d rather she’d spent the money on exercise classes or circuits sessions, she loves that sort of stuff, the latest one is “clubercise” you get glow sticks and everything. That sort of thing makes her happy and keeps her active, the fitbit sends a report to her phone normally telling her to walk more. Which seems to just gets her down, like the OP I really can’t fathom their popularity.

Activity trackers (at least hers) don’t really help motivate… They’re sold using lots of aspirational imagery to people who don’t really need them…

A forerunner is the same thing.

If you say so…

If you say so…

he right you know.

Activity trackers (at least hers) don’t really help motivate… They’re sold using lots of aspirational imagery to people who don’t really need them…

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IPEVIgup2no

I calling shenanigans, bloke arrives at cafe and the back of the t-shirt is bone dry after this “long run.” 😯

Granted that was mostly lifestyle twaddle, but it does basically show the product, a running watch, as being used primarily for… Running.

[video]https://youtu.be/WQB4fzF6ke4[/video]

WTF is a fitbit “activity tracker” actually for then? Their advertising doesn’t really make it clear it’s just **** noise…

My (admittedly second hand) experience of the actual products suggests they’re mostly a new years resolution, realised in plastic and PCB, and forgotten by easter…

Or else it’s a smartwatch with added virtue signalling so everyone can know you do some sort of activities that need to be tracked.

To make bimbos like my wife think that they have done some exercise when all they have done is walk to the shops from work.