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My wife's birthday is rapidly approaching and she wants some sort of fitness tracker / GPS watch / fitbit thing, but I've not got a clue, other than I've head that fitbits are a bit poo.
Can the collective mind help with what's best out there??
What does she want it for? Is she going running and recording routes, or just wants a "hey, I did 10,000 steps today!"
Garmin Vivoactive HR.
Does all the Fitbit stuff, plus is actually waterproof and is GPS enabled. So once the novelty of tracking steps has passed, it's still useable for tracking rides, runs etc.
Also shows phone notifications etc.
Caveat: It's a bit bulky.
https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2016/02/garmins-vivoactivehr-vivofit3.html
Can get it for £160-180 online.
I got my wife a Fitbit Blaze and while it seems decent I think my Vivoactive HR is significantly better in everything other than looks.
IMHO the Vivoactive HR is the best reasonably(ish) priced option at the moment. I've used mine to track runs and bike rides (indoor and outdoor in both cases) as well as swims and it's been very good for all of them. Only downside for me (apart from not being the best looker) is that it won't connect to a power meter but that's not likely to be an issue for most people.
I have a Fitbit Blaze and I like it - great battery life, syncs with phone so I can control music, get Facebook and SMS updates etc. I have it set up to sync with Strava too, so when I start a run / ride I simply have to activate it using the touch screen.
It doesn't have GPS on it though so the only way it will track a run / ride is if you have the synced phone with you, but I never find that a problem as I always run with music and always take my phone with me on rides for safety.
@cougar - sorry, should have said - definitely for tracking multi activities. Running, hill walking, skiing, biking etc, rather than just banging on about how many steps she's done from her desk to the coffee machine and back!
Thanks for the suggestions so far - needs to be GPS enabled rather than rely on her phone, which she generally doesn't take running.
Defiantly the vivoactive then. I have the first gen and its really good. And unlike may other sports watches, doesn't look too daft on a women's wrist - I wear mine every day. The elevation numbers from riding and running are a bit out (did a 5 km last weekend which based on the map must have 120+ m ascent, but watch only logged 40 m - this is pretty common) - but is my only complaint. Battery on it is pretty decent too, and only takes 1 hour to charge.
needs to be GPS enabled rather than rely on her phone, which she generally doesn't take running.
If money is no object....
https://buy.garmin.com/en-GB/GB/p/552237/pn/010-01685-01
...although it's not out till next month I think.
That is silly money!
And unlike may other sports watches, doesn't look too daft on a women's wrist - I wear mine every day.
Looking at the pictures, this might not be as applicable to the HR version - it is certainly bigger than the old one!
That is silly money!
Not really.
[url= https://buy.garmin.com/en-GB/GB/p/532035/pn/010-01957-01 ]The Fenix Chronos[/url] on the other hand.
😯
If its more for running/cycling, I would look at the Forerunner 235.
Or the Forerunner 35 is cheap and pretty slim.
I've got a Fenix 3 which is great for all that, but at 51mm it's probably a bit big for a woman's wrist - definitely something you'd want to try before you buy, which makes surprising her out of the question! (Which is a pity, there are some reasonable deals around with the new Fenix 5 coming out).
I was looking at the Tomtom Spark 3 for similar multisport tracking, but that's at the lower end of the market. Decided to keep going with my old Forerunner in the end.
Another Garmin offering - Vivosmart HR+ (note the +)
Newer model in that little series, does all the standard step counter fitbit things but also has GPS built in. DCRainmaker says its best for running over anything but can be used to track most things.
Vivoactive HR is certainly better - but its also bigger so depending on lifestyle may not be as friendly
One thing to consider about Fitbit vs Garmin is that step count on Garmin isn't viewable on Fitbit site (closed ecosystem [i]I think[/i]) and vice versa, so you wont get the leaderboard (my wife seems to be all over that ATM - she loves it)
Personally I have a Forerunner 235 which is absolutely perfect for me - really great watch. The wife has a Fitbit (Luna?) without GPS and she's now at the point where she wants to know how far her runs are etc.