Fitbit Cost 6 evaluate: manner higher than I anticipated
Fitbit Cost 6
MSRP $160.00
“The Fitbit Cost 6 gives wonderful well being monitoring and useful Google apps in a glossy design — and at an unimaginable worth.”
Professionals
- Light-weight and cozy to put on
- Strong health-tracking instruments
- Constructed-in GPS
- Google apps work nicely
- Quick, responsive software program
- Almost every week of battery life
Cons
- Unreliable notifications
- No native music storage
- Many options require Fitbit Premium
This fall has been a busy one for Google. The corporate has launched two new smartphones, a brand new smartwatch, and a brand new model of Android. However there’s one thing else that slipped by way of the cracks amid all that: the Fitbit Cost 6.
The Fitbit Cost 6 was introduced in September, and it was shortly buried underneath extra thrilling bulletins for the Google Pixel 8, Google Pixel 8 Professional, and the Google Pixel Watch 2. However to utterly overlook the Fitbit Cost 6 can be a mistake. I’ve been carrying it for a little bit over every week, and for a $160 health tracker, it’s a powerful package deal.
Earlier than you go and spend $350 on the most recent Pixel Watch or one other smartwatch, right here’s why it’s possible you’ll need to think about the Fitbit Cost 6 as an alternative.
Apple Watch Extremely and Apple Watch Extremely 2 earlier this 12 months, swapping to the Fitbit Cost 6 got here as a little bit of a shock. I’ve been utilizing two of the largest and heaviest smartwatches you should buy, and going to the Fitbit Cost 6’s small, petite design threw me for a curve — however an excellent one!
The Fitbit Cost 6 seems rather a lot just like the Fitbit Cost 5 that got here earlier than it. It has a conventional health band form with a 1.04-inch AMOLED display and an aluminum physique. It doesn’t push health tracker design in a daring, new route, however it works very nicely. I’ve discovered the Cost 6 extremely cozy to put on, the display seems nice, and the included silicone band feels very good. I typically forgot I used to be carrying the tracker, which is maybe one of the best praise I may give its design.
I additionally actually just like the aspect button on the Fitbit Cost 6. It’s not a mechanical button, however it seems like a button, and urgent it provides you haptic suggestions (type of just like the Dwelling button on the iPhone 7). You may press it to wake the Cost 6’s display or return to your watch face whenever you’re in a menu or an app. Fitbit eliminated the button on the Cost 5, and I’m thrilled to see it make a return right here.
Though Fitbit hasn’t created any new health-tracking options for the Fitbit Cost 6, all the ordinary suspects are right here. The large improve this 12 months is an improved coronary heart fee sensor that Google claims is 60% extra correct than that of earlier Cost fashions and gives the “most correct coronary heart fee on a Fitbit tracker but.”
Whether or not happening out of doors walks and operating on a treadmill indoors, the Fitbit Cost 6’s coronary heart fee readings are sometimes proper according to the guts fee I get from my Oura Ring — generally inside a single beat per minute. Some exercises have had bigger variances, however that’s often the case when evaluating any two wearables aspect byside. It’s been some time since I final wore a Fitbit, so I can’t converse an excessive amount of to how the Cost 6’s readings evaluate to older fashions, however I’ve been actually happy with its efficiency right here.
Past monitoring your coronary heart fee, all the well being/health options you’d anticipate are current. The Fitbit Cost 6 tracks your steps, has over 40 train modes to select from, and may mechanically detect choose exercises (like strolling and operating). Another highlights embody:
- Sleep monitoring
- SpO2 monitoring
- Coronary heart fee variability (HRV)
- Excessive and low coronary heart fee notifications
- Irregular coronary heart rhythm notifications
- ECG app
- EDA Scan app (for stress administration)
The excellent news is that every one of this works as marketed. I actually like Fitbit’s sleep monitoring; it provides you an easy-to-understand sleep rating that’s primarily based in your time asleep, sleep phases, motion, and coronary heart fee. Fitbit’s sleep rating is commonly extra beneficiant than my Oura Ring, however it by no means feels prefer it’s completely off base. And whereas I hope I by no means have to make use of them, it’s nice having irregular coronary heart rhythm notifications on such an reasonably priced health tracker.
I typically forgot I used to be carrying the Fitbit Cost 6.
I’ve additionally been proud of the overall efficiency of the Fitbit Cost 6. The raise-to-wake gesture for the show works nicely, and swiping by way of the person interface may be very snappy. I anticipated it to be a bit sluggish, however it’s truthfully as quick as I may have requested for.
There’s one different factor I actually love in regards to the Fitbit Cost 6, and that’s the battery life. I started carrying the Fitbit Cost 6 at 9:50 p.m. on Friday, October 13, with the battery totally charged to 100%. It wasn’t till 9:50 p.m. Thursday, October 19, that the Cost 6’s battery lastly acquired all the way down to 16%.
That was with sleep monitoring every night time and 6 recorded exercises — together with a mixture of out of doors walks, treadmill runs, and power coaching. This was additionally with the always-on show turned off. You may flip it on to at all times see the time with out having to faucet the display or increase your wrist, however in case you do that, anticipate that to chop into your battery life a bit.
The Fitbit Cost 6 additionally recharges pretty shortly. The proprietary charger magnetically attaches to the again of the tracker and takes it from zero to 100% in about an hour and 20 minutes.
which acquired a major redesign earlier this 12 months.
The core design of the app is essentially the identical as earlier than. On the At this time web page, you see your main objective on the high of the display, some secondary ones under it, and an inventory under that detailing your different well being information. Fitbit now gives a number of totally different “focus” choices to vary the 4 targets on the high of the web page, or you may create your individual customized focus and choose whichever metrics are most necessary to you. From there, you may present, cover, and rearrange your entire different well being information additional down on the web page.
I really like how a lot management Fitbit provides you over how the At this time web page seems. You may prioritize the knowledge you care about probably the most, cover what you don’t care about, and the UI for that is all tremendous intuitive — simply faucet the pencil icon on the At this time web page and also you’re prepared to start out customizing issues.
The opposite two pages, Coach and You, additionally work nicely. Coach is the place you’ll discover all of Fitbit Premium’s guided exercises and mindfulness classes. The library has a very beneficiant quantity of content material to sift by way of, and you’ll simply seek for exercises by exercise sort, period, your most popular teacher, and extra. The You web page gives shortcuts to your private well being targets, Fitbit mates, and badges.
General, I believe this up to date Fitbit app seems fairly good. You’re nonetheless seeing the identical information as earlier than, however most of the pages have been up to date with a extra fashionable, simplified look. The Fitbit app at all times felt outdated to me, and this replace does a (principally) good job of cleansing issues up. There are a number of pages right here and there that also use the outdated app design, however for probably the most half, it is a welcome change. Now simply give me a darkish mode, Fitbit. Please.
The Fitbit Cost 6 is out there for buy now
. It prices $160 and is out there in three types: an obsidian band with a black aluminum case, a porcelain band with a silver case, or a coral band with a champagne gold case. You should buy it from the Google Retailer, Fitbit’s web site, and retailers like Amazon and Greatest Purchase.
The Fitbit Cost 6 additionally comes with a six-month free trial to Fitbit Premium, a $60 worth. After that, Fitbit Premium prices $10 a month.
How does all of that stack as much as the competitors? The Pixel Watch 2 additionally makes use of Fitbit’s well being/health platform, however you get a few extra sensors (a temperature sensor and a steady EDA sensor), plus a full-fledged Put on OS smartwatch expertise. Nonetheless, at $350, it’s additionally significantly costlier — and it’s topic to the identical Fitbit Premium membership.
An alternative choice to contemplate is the Garmin Vivomove Development. It’s a hybrid watch that appears nice, reveals primary well being information on a hidden display, and works with the superb Garmin Join app — providing you with entry to a variety of well being monitoring instruments, all with none subscription wanted.