Fitbit vs. Apple Watch: Which One Is Right for You?
When it comes to fitness trackers, Fitbit and Apple Watch are the two biggest brands in the market today. Both devices offer comprehensive health and fitness apps that monitor your activity levels, heart rate, sleep patterns, and more—they even tell you when to breathe during workouts! So which one should you choose? Here’s what you need to know about each device to make an informed decision.
Fitbit Versa
The Fitbit Versa is one of a few fitness trackers that can now sync with an iPhone, and it also boasts a heart-rate sensor. The Versa is cheaper than some other options at $200, but if you're looking for something more on par with an Apple Watch—especially when it comes to aesthetics—this isn't it; it's not even water-resistant, so don't wear it in or near water. However, there are health benefits of owning a fitness tracker (and wearing one every day) and we'll talk about those shortly after discussing Fitbit itself and its design/functionality. For now, let's look at what makes Fitbit different from other health and fitness tracking devices. First off, it has a pretty straightforward name: It tracks your steps taken each day, your distance traveled throughout each week, how many calories you've burned during any given workout session (more on that later), and how many hours of sleep you get each night. These stats alone aren't too helpful unless they're compared against your own personal benchmarks (which is why having goals within your device helps). So by using Fitbit to keep tabs on all these daily activities and then seeing where your data falls in comparison to previous days, weeks, months—or even years!—you have both motivation as well as direction for what needs improvement moving forward.
Fitbit Charge 3
The Fitbit Charge 3 is a great, affordable option that offers call, text and calendar alerts, automatic exercise recognition and interchangeable bands—all in a sleek design. And at less than $150, it's one of the best deals on our list. But even though it's compact (and stylish), don't expect to get a lot of notifications with it; many people find themselves checking their phones more often than they check their wrist while wearing it. Still, if you're looking for something basic that still packs in a lot of functionality—including workouts and sleep tracking—it doesn't get much better than what Fitbit has offered with its Charge line of devices. If you have an iPhone or Android phone, then consider going with a device like Apple Watch Series 4 or Samsung Galaxy Watch Active instead. These are fully featured smartwatches that do way more than track your fitness activity levels. They'll send you texts, notify you about calls and let you know when other apps want your attention. If all else fails, there's always Google Wear OS as well—Google recently announced several new watches running its software during CES 2019 including Fossil Sport (men) and Fossil Q Venture HR (women). Prices start at $255. These will work with both iOS and Android phones and feature full-color displays that show off Google Assistant as well as step-by-step coaching to keep your heart rate up during those tough workout sessions.
Fitbit Ionic
The Ionic is Fitbit’s first smartwatch—it has a color touch screen, can store music offline, and has an app store with some pretty snazzy apps already available. It also has a workout mode that can guide you through your daily exercise routine—like cardio and weight training—and keep track of your heart rate and overall heart health during that time. Plus, you can receive notifications from your phone on it, so if you don’t want to dig it out of your pocket every time it goes off, you don’t have to; it will even track how long and how well you sleep at night. The Ionic is $300, but you can get it cheaper with a monthly payment plan. There are plenty of other fitness trackers out there (including some more affordable ones), but none offer quite as many features as the Ionic does. If you’re looking for something that can do it all, look no further than Fitbit's newest product.
Jawbone UP3
Jawbone is best known for its activity trackers and smartwatches, but Jawbone UP3 brings a new dimension to wearables: sleep monitoring. This device tracks your resting heart rate and your respiration patterns throughout the night to determine how restful your sleep was—as well as how much time you spent in each stage of sleep (light, deep, REM). It doesn’t look like much—but that’s also kind of its charm! The Jawbone UP3 has a soft fabric band (the same one found on all of their devices) that comes in three colors, black/gray/white; blue/gray/white; or red/gray/white. The display itself is relatively small, but it's easy to read with large text and icons. The Jawbone UP3 does have a smart alarm feature that will wake you up at an optimal point during your sleep cycle so you feel more rested than if you were woken up by an alarm clock. It also features a find my phone feature if it gets lost under the bed or couch cushions. If you're looking for something simple, comfortable, and accurate—this might be just what you need!
Apple Watch Series 3
The first thing you'll notice about Series 3 is that it's got a bigger screen, which means it'll fit more information on one screen (in theory). While technically, you don't need an LTE connection with your watch to make and receive calls or send texts, having cellular capability gives you a ton of flexibility when it comes to getting important data while out and about. If your iPhone isn't in reach—say you're at a yoga class or stuck in traffic—you can still get valuable info without checking your phone right away. The big drawback here is price; Apple Watches are some of the most expensive smartwatches out there, especially if you go all-in with cellular service and more storage. But again, you've got options. And if you already have an iPhone, it's pretty much a no-brainer.
Health and Fitness Comparison
The Apple Watch is a fitness tracker and health monitor, whereas Fitbits are health trackers only. However, they both provide similar features in terms of tracking your activity and alerting you to important health metrics like heart rate and blood pressure. For those looking to track their workouts, calorie intake, weight loss goals, overall stress levels, etc., both devices offer similar functionality. Both also have sleep tracking capabilities as well as mobile payment apps (Apple Pay and Fitbit Pay). As far as style goes, there are more options available with Fitbits than with Apple Watches—ranging from watch bands to stickers that allow you to personalize your device. But if you’re looking for something that looks more like a traditional watch, then an Apple Watch might be right for you. Ultimately, it comes down to what type of device fits your lifestyle best!
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