Apple Watch just makes sense if you are already on iPhone. I resisted it for a long time but now after getting one it is so useful for things like having access to DUO codes on your risk without a phone and maintaining healthy habits
What is your preferred fitness tracker/smartwatch?
Submitted 1 year ago by 2tone@lemmy.world to technology@lemmy.world
Comments
TORFdot0@lemmy.world 1 year ago
lucid@programming.dev 1 year ago
Love my Apple Watch! Its main downside compared to the rest is weak battery life, you basically need to charge it every day. It’s an easy habit to form though (I just throw mine on the charger when I shower).
TORFdot0@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Mine chargers super fast and so yeah I can charge it while I do my bed time routine and have it 100% to track sleep and be ready for the next day
anotherandrew@lemmy.mixdown.ca 1 year ago
Mine lasts about 3 days before I have to charge it, but I’m also largely ignoring it and use it as a watch / timer / notification reader. I had one with the cell modem but when I broke it was during the pandemic and just wasn’t on-site where I’d often leave my phone at the desk.
kiddblur@lemm.ee 1 year ago
My battery health has gotten awful recently too. I’ve got a series 5, so yes it’s 4 years old, but I genuinely only get about 12 hours of battery life these days. I went through and uninstalled every single app I don’t use, but it’s still awful.
Love everything else about it though, so I set a slickdeals alert to hopefully pick up a cheaper series 8 sometime between now and when the series 9 launches
SloganLessons@kbin.social 1 year ago
When I had an Note 10 Lite, I had a xiaimi smart band. I still think that it's impressive for the price, but the little guy had issues left and right with any app that wasn't xiaomi's own apps. (although sometimes, even those had issues)
Then I got an iphone, and later a apple watch. It just works, even with third party apps. Expensive as hell though
thehatfox@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ve been an Apple Watch user for several years now. When I first purchased one I wondered if it might turn out to be a bit of a gimmick. But now I don’t think I would want to be without one.
The Apple Watch integrates seemlessly with the iPhone. The fitness features may not be quite as in depth as Garmin offers, but they are good enough for casual exercise and have been effective and keeping me more active. If you are numbers person the value of seeing your activity metrics can’t be overstated.
Apple Pay and hands free messaging come in handy often.
I also like the general design. The Apple Watch is square, and I think a square display works much better for a smartwatch. There is also a thriving marketplace for alternate watch bands and they are super easy to swap - no more mangling my finger nails trying to fiddle with those spring pins most watches use.
milan@discuss.tchncs.de 1 year ago
personally i am fine with the garmin on ios, only annoyance is double notifications
TORFdot0@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Garmin’s are great step trackers, I have read in reviews they are a lot more accurate in that regard compared to Apple Watch. The other integrations into the apple ecosystem is what I appreciate about my series 8
ThirdWorldOrder@lemmy.one 1 year ago
Yeah I just picked up an Ultra after not having one since the first gen. Very useful for sleep tracking, short cuts (if you have a smart home) and all kinds of other crap. Works nice with AirPod max too.
IndiBrony@lemmy.world 1 year ago
There’s only one smart watch that matters! This was the boyo!
All my phone numbers, my entire school lesson schedule, a calculator - everything 10 year old me ever needed!
thehatfox@lemmy.world 1 year ago
player2@lemmy.world 1 year ago
For the most detailed exercise/health tracking, I’d highly recommend Garmin watches. First, no subscription fees, you buy the hardware and you own it and can customize it. Second, the battery life can’t be beat. Third, stats, graphs, analytics! Plus it works just as well whether you’re an apple or android user.
I have the Forerunner 265 and it is so much fun for a stats and graph loving nerd like myself. My gf chose the Venu 2 Sq because she wanted a square screen and she is really happy with it.
jennwiththesea@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ve been a happy Fitbit user for years, but am finding their Premium push increasingly annoying. I shouldn’t have to pay a subscription fee to see data that my tracker is already getting. I almost switched to Garmin last time but didn’t, and I regret that now. My current Fitbit is still in great shape so it’ll be a while until I can justify a new tracker.
2tone@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ve always associated Garmin with big over the top styling, but I like that Venu Sq 2. Garmin also seems best quality
Drewsteau@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I have a vivoactive 4s and it’s got all the features I want in a smartwatch while also being discreet and small. It doesn’t feel any different on my wrist than an analog watch and that’s what I love most
pyrosive@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I have this watch and can confirm it is excellent
NeedsMoreSpice@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Waiting for the new garmin smartwatch to finally move away from fitbit.
Tiefa@lemmy.world 1 year ago
yeah that’s the issue for me with choosing a watch. I like the Charge 4 because it’s sorta small and doesn’t have a huge face.
unwinagainstable@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Can you use apps with this? I’m getting into weightlifting a bit and want to use the Strong app to record my lifting routine without needing to take out my phone. The only other features I really want are decent heart rate monitoring and good pairing with AirPods.
player2@lemmy.world 1 year ago
The watches have a second app called connect IQ which is their app store where they support third party developers to make apps, widget, ultra customizable watchfaces, integration of new connected sensors.
It does not support common phone apps or have incredible advanced phone integration like an apple or Google watch would have but we like that because we already get enough screen time. I’m able to see and reply to text messages though, see and interact with all notifications, control audio/media that is playing and more though so it’s not devoid of features at all.
Pacers31Colts18@sh.itjust.works 1 year ago
I tried random Android watches. They all sucked.
I bought a Garmin Instinct 2 Solar. I love it. Charge it when I shower and that gets me by, have never had to charge it overnight. Battery is at 15 days currently.
ShakeThatYam@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I like my Pixel watch. It’s battery life doesn’t last more than 1.5 days, but I have no issues charging it for 15 or so mins in the morning.
tony@lemmy.hoyle.me.uk 1 year ago
I missed the prime day offer on those… Was so close to buying one.
khelmr@kbin.social 1 year ago
The Pebble watches. They may not be made anymore, but they are the only smart watches I have used that felt like an actual smart watch instead of a phone for your wrist.
iAmTheTot@kbin.social 1 year ago
Isn't the point of making a watch smart is that you can get your phone onto your wrist?
khelmr@kbin.social 1 year ago
In some ways yes, but I think a smart watch is optimal for performing tasks quickly and and giving me information at a glance. A smart watch should feel like a dashboard on my wrist that stops me from using my phone unnecessarily. Most smart watches feel like a small second display for my phone with a worse user experience that make me want to always perform those tasks on my phone.
CORaven@kbin.social 1 year ago
It is still the best "dumb" smartwatch out there. Long battery life, physical buttons, no touch screen nonsense and it just works.
I am still rocking my Pebble2 but unfortunately the silicon buttons are starting to deteriorate. It will be difficult to make repairs/upgrades to the watch, but I don't see a 1to1 replacement for it.
Electricblush@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Still miss my pebble…
Rocked a Garmin a few years, now I’m trying galaxy watch 5 pro. Miss the week long battery but 2+ days is “ok”, a lot less annoying then I first thought it would be.
Exelent integration with my phone is a big plus. (For instance the Garmin never let me respond to alarms from the Samsung clock app :/ )
johnnixon@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Upvote for Pebble. It was the best of all time. I could operate the buttons without even looking.
otter@lemmy.ca 1 year ago
While there are a lot of comments saying Garmin, I haven’t seen people mention the privacy aspect
foundation.mozilla.org/en/…/wearables/
Garmin apps are much better for privacy. If I’m going to be wearing a biometric tracker 24/7, I don’t want that data being sold to advertisers. That’s more important to me than most other features
kostel_thecreed@lemmy.ca 1 year ago
Not many people care about privacy anymore. I mention it to my family, friends, etc and how they should do certain things online to stay more ‘private’ (not anonymous) and they laugh it off saying they have nothing to hide / don’t care about their stuff being online… Sucks.
otter@lemmy.ca 1 year ago
I get that as well, or when people care about the issues but not enough to change up how they are used to doing things.
It is getting better though, I’m finding more friends are moving to the better options. It’s even easier when the privacy respecting option is as good as the alternatives. I guess Garmin is a decent example since people were recommending the watches even without the privacy aspect.
Nighed@sffa.community 1 year ago
That said, didn’t they get breached and lose all their customer data a few years back?
jcit878@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’m happily on the garmin ecosystem. Felix 5x is still going strong for about 2 weeks battery on normal use. takes a beating and still looks new. only had to replace the band. I use garmin on my bike too
zpm@lemmy.world 1 year ago
5x is great. Still working perfectly and looks great. That sapphire glass is fantastic. I have friends with scratches in their pixel watches already yet with ally yard work, stone, building and sports - not a scratch.
yoz@aussie.zone 1 year ago
I wear an analog which has nothing to track and connect to a phone. Just like the good ol’ days.
Hazdaz@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Is there one that exists that isn’t ugly, can last for weeks and isn’t the size of a dinner plate? (i t s not even the diameter thats the problem, its the thickness. I absolutely hate thick watches)
When they invent one that meets that criteria, let me know and I’ll consider it.
theplanlessman@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Have you looked into withings? They’re analog watches with a small lcd for notifications, fitness tracking, etc. They last a month between charges and are not too big.
Hazdaz@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Had to look them up. They are by far the best looking smart watches that I’ve seen. I’ll have to see what their capabilities are but if I get one, th3se will be near the top of my list.
electromage@lemm.ee 1 year ago
Garmin Instinct 2 Solar. It’s light and durable, solar charging with several weeks between charges when using GPS tracking pretty regularly.
ohlaph@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I am an avid Garmin user. I have tried the Vivoactive and am currently using the Fenix series. Highly recommend!!!
Quik2007@kbin.social 1 year ago
I have been using a PineTime for quite a while now which is an absolute no-brainer for 27$.
Even if it’s marketed for tech/foss enthusiasts it’s really easy to use, would recommend if you just want simple step tracking and heart rate monitoring.BoopDood@feddit.ie 1 year ago
Only had the pixel watch but I really like it
ShakeThatYam@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Second this. Battery life is only good for like 1.5 days but it charges in like 15 mins so it’s not a big deal for me. Sleep tracking and fitness tracking have been good. Only thing I don’t like is the default strap it comes with; it was irritating my skin. The stretchy fabric one is so much better.
RomTy@kbin.social 1 year ago
Amazfit with Gadgetbridge, FLOSS smartwatch app, a recent really good discovery!
chakan2@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I still like fitbit. The metrics are solid, and the battery life is decent.
emptyother@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Same. A solid watch. And lightweight and comfortable. And a style I enjoy. A decent app. Just too bad it ate another smart watch company, before itself got eaten by google, who so far has done nothing with it except slowly killing features. We are truly living in the age of #enshittification.
adeoxymus@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I bought it years ago because it was the most accurate on tracking sleep. The fact that the battery lasts a week is also great. I wonder if there’s been any new tests on the other metrics (heart rate, temperature etc)
PineapplePartisan@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Yep. I love my Charge 5 and don’t foresee changing to anything else in the near future. My only annoyance is google taking it over and enshitifying the app experience.
PSYDUCK@aussie.zone 1 year ago
Casio need to market their watches better, they have the Smartest dumbwatch**** of them all - Image
Casio have several lines that support Bluetooth - essentially will beep and vibrate on Notifications, calls and messages. Does basic fitness tracking. It also does all of this whilst basically being indestructible and a battery life of atleast 3 years.
No one seems to know this and I blame Casios poor marketing - I didn’t know any of this until I bought a new G-Shock and realised it had a BT label in the manual.
Wabbitsmiles@lemmy.world 1 year ago
How are you liking it so far?
PSYDUCK@aussie.zone 1 year ago
Ive got two BT enabled G Shocks, one of them my daily driver for the past year and I can’t fault it. It’s just a normal watch, with normal watch battery life and normal G Shock robustness - except that it savese having to pull my phone out of my pocket everytime I get a notification.
condenser@lemdro.id 1 year ago
Interesting, will definitely check out. Is fitness tracking done independently of smartphone apps?
PSYDUCK@aussie.zone 1 year ago
Going to be completely honest, havnt delved into the fitness tracking much - the watch appears to have a step counter but unsure if this is app dependant or not.
Roya1eWCheese@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Got my first fitness watch couple months ago. It was a Garmin and tbh I freaking love it!!! As a lot of comments already mentioned, Garmin gave very detail information, and the battery life just can’t beat I would definitly do it again!
lambda@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Anything that works with Gadgetbridge is a good choice.Or maybe pinetime or bangle.js those look pretty cool too.
kadu@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I really like Samsung’s Watch 5, both in terms of appearance but also software and tracking performance. It’s the only sleep tracker that actually matches my subjective experience with sleep (how tired I feel, how many times I remember waking up, etc).
NeedsMoreSpice@lemmy.world 1 year ago
If they didn’t lock features to Samsung phones I might be interested in the 6.
burgersc12@sh.itjust.works 1 year ago
The rotating bezel is awesome, glad they’re bringing it back!
lemmy@yamasaur.com 1 year ago
There are APKs for samsung health that unlock all features on non-samsung phones
Yearly1845@reddthat.com 1 year ago
I just want something that auto tracks my fitness, shows the time, and shows notifications from my phone on a nice looking display. Everything else is bloat for me.
soviettaters@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I use a Garmin vivomove Sport! It has a physical analog watch with a screen underneath the watch face. It tracks my steps and activities I engage in as well as shows me notifications from my phone. It has quite a lot of other options such as stress and sleep tracking as well but those are purely optional.
Yearly1845@reddthat.com 1 year ago
Wow that looks really nice! When my Galaxy watch dies I’ll get one of those for sure. Thanks!
Proweruser@feddit.de 1 year ago
I agreed. Additionally it has to be not too bulky and cheap. Mi Band does the trick in my experience.
Kanzar@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Ngl I have used the find my phone function a LOT on my smartwatch, and do like having google maps showing on it when I’m navigating in an unfamiliar location. I’m sure there’s other features I utilise but these came to mind as being really handy.
Mrmcmisterson@slightlyawesome.ninja 1 year ago
I have a garmin epix 2, best Damn watch ever. It lasts roughly 2 weeks on a charge. All the same features as the Fenix but OLED display.
zpm@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Love my Fenix 5x. Sapphire glass, rugged and the battery lasts forever. It wasn’t cheap but worth every penny. No touch screen and I turn off most notifications. It just works as a nice watch with fitness tracking. Garmin really makes a good product.
Md1501@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I have an instinct and really like it. Garmin also does not seem as bad at collecting user data as say fitbit
johnnixon@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Pebble Time. It was the best ever until the battery swelled. My Fitbit Versa 2 was good until the battery gave out. My latest Fitbit has worse software with less features than the last and I hate it. There are no apps available anymore.
anonionfinelyminced@kbin.social 1 year ago
Withings Scanwatch is cross-platform. No need for a branded device to use it, does all the usual tracking stuff plus afib detection. One of the reasons I chose it was that it looks like a watch and not a toy. Also, depending on how you use it, it can go for days between charges. Most of the similar "brand locked" devices seem to only go 1 or 2 days max.
PaperTowel@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ve only tried my Pixel Watch, and it’s not perfect, but I do really enjoy it. Fitness tracking is pretty on point with sleep tracking being really solid and important for me since sleeping has always been a more difficult part of my life.
Tabooki@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Withings. All the features without looking like your wearing a computer on your arm
chicagohuman@lemm.ee 1 year ago
I’ve used fossil watches, they look really nice, but the software can be flaky
Blademax@lemmy.one 1 year ago
Battery life last over 3 weeks, before need charge. Amazfit GTR 3
Meets my needs: shower proof, great battery life (21+days), connects to phone (limit app/notify), sleep/heart/steps track, and can change the watchface for free w/ many choices.
I never remove it for wash hand/dishes, shower. Super battery life. Might not be super accurate, but I only need a # count. Very affordable. No issues with it. Would recommend.
Amazfit GTR 3
Zoldyck@lemmy.world 1 year ago
They all annoy the shit out of me.
ang3c0@lemmy.world 1 year ago
Garmin for sure.
Dragontre@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ve had a Fitbit, Samsung Smart, and Garmin. Fitbit and Samsung were almost a daily charge where my Garmin Solar lasts about a week. Both Fitbit and Samsung died on me roughly after a year and a half, Garmin has shown no issues.
jennwiththesea@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ll be switching to Garmin next time for other reasons, but my current Fitbit (Versa 3) actually has great battery life. 6-7 days between charges, unless I’m using the screen a lot.