Fitbit or similar

fatsmoker

My son (12) wants a fitbit or something similar for his birthday. I don't know anything about these things, hence looking for help / recommendations. He doesn't have a phone yet so can't synch any data, unless he can do that on the computer.
I'm glad he is taking some kind of interest in his health, he's a fairly active, but is prone to sit slouched on his bed playing games on a tablet if left to his own devices. Do these things beep when you've been inactive for some time?
Without spending a fortune, say 60 quid, what can I expect him to get out of one.
Cheers for any pointers.

dayvidj

Is it just for activity tracking e.g. steps, sleep time etc or does he want to track sports such as running/cycling too? There can be quite a difference depending on whether you are looking for a device with gps built in.

tangled_metal

If your laptop m has Bluetooth then you can sync Fitbit to computer. If not you can get USB Bluetooth dongles. Fitbit app can be put on Windows 10 laptops. At first I synced my surge to laptop.

Wheelspinner

I've used one of the Garmin Vivofit things for a couple of years now. It will sync to phone or computer, via the bluetooth dongle thing it comes with.

If you are slacking, there's a red line across the screen to remind you to get moving, but it doesn't beep.

Main reason I bought this over all the others is it runs on a normal watch battery, so never has to be recharged. Mine's lasted 2 years so far on the original battery, but I didn't get the HR version which presumably helps battery life.

Waterproof too.

Only downside is no backlight on display so unreadable in the dark.

veronese68

Wife has a Withings watch, looks like a normal watch with an extra little dial that is the pedometer. Normal battery so lasts a couple of years. Has an app that shows activity and sleep. I believe it will record swimming as well.
She likes it because it looks normal, no experience of anything to compare it with.

tangled_metal

A lot of laptops have Bluetooth built in. Bluetooth and the Fitbit app is what's needed whether on phone or computer. If no Bluetooth on your computer then use the supplied usb dongle.

I got the Fitbit surge because it was supposedly more sports focused or capable. I don't believe that after 6 months use. One of the things I feel it lacks to be truly useful for training use is the HR zones. It only recognizes fat burning, cardio and peak. That's a merging of a few normal HR zones that usually number 5. No beep or alarm to keep you in a zone.

I think now I'd get something else. Probably a more sports based watch with HR strap. Fitbit is only really a fancy pedometer with a few more features. If that's what you want I reckon the more basic watches are good enough. If a basic HR function is wanted get the version with HR at the end of its name.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

£70 will get you a Sony Smartwatch 3 from Currys, it has its own GPS and so can do apps like Strava without needing to be tethered to a mobile for activity recording.

Topcashback are doing 6.05% back off Fitbits bought from Currys, I cannot see anything specific for the SS3, but Currys has been the cheapest place to buy the SS3 from for the last ~week.
https://www.topcashback.co.uk/currys/

cooldad

I'm guessing his birthday has passed.

chris_bass

fenix 5? and if he doesn't want it i'll have it!