Getting serious about your fitness game? This one’s for you

These days, almost all handheld devices and digital wearables can track your steps and monitor your heart rate. But of all the fitness trackers out there, Fitbit takes the top spot and with good reason—they literally have everything for every active body. But if you’re just about to get serious about your fitness game and you want something more than the run-of-the-mill trackers, then try on the Fitbit Charge 2.

via Brookstone

The good and the bad

Fitbit is not just big on fitness; they’re also big on style and personalization. So just like its predecessors, the Fitbit Charge 2 boasts swappable bands. It also has a multi-line OLED display that tells the time and shows you your fitness data, and it has an always-on heart rate monitor. But wait there’s more—this fitness tracker features a five-day battery life and *drum roll please* comes at a much affordable price!
As for the bad, the Fitbit Charge 2 would have been perfect if it were water-resistant. But other than that, there’s not much else of the “bad” we can say about it.

What else you need to know

A follow up to the Charge HR, the Charge 2 features a slight redesign and some new features that make it among the best fitness companions for the average person (again, price and function).

Tell you more?

Sure. For one, the sleek and straightforward design: steel body, large screen and changeable leather or rubber bands. Oh and did we mention, that large screen will show you all the fitness data you want—time, steps and heart rate, again, all at once. Meanwhile, the lift-to-look gesture makes up for the fact that the screen is not always on. And tapping on the display will bring up extra data you may want to check, like estimated calorie burn, resting heart rate, etc.)
Other features include a stopwatch, exercise tracking mode and a “Relax” mindfulness app, which encourages timed breathing and relaxation triggered by one’s heart rate data. Users can also view phone notifications but you won’t be able to respond to anything, which is fine if you ask us (because who really wants to respond to a work text while your on the treadmill?).

via Fitbit

But this is what sets it apart

It tracks the basics, standing, weight loss, nutrition, water intake heart rate, exercise, sleep and even stair climbing. We also heard from the guys at TechRadar that the Fitbit Charge 2 can be paired with other smart tools that enhance one’s experience (like Withings scale). We appreciate that it won’t just tell you to stand when you’ve been sedentary but will encourage you to walk around to earn the steps you need, too. But we find that the best feature of the Charge 2 is this: it can do a basic reading of one’s heart health by charting one’s heart rate (versus BMI) against statistical age and gender range. It’s not super accurate, but it will give you an idea of how your heart is doing.

via Wareable

Any areas for improvement?

Yes. Aside from not being water-resistant, it would be nice to have an onboard GPS so users won’t need to carry their phones while going for a run.

The verdict

At the end of the day, the Fitbit Charge 2 is a Fitbit and it comes with a friendlier price tag, so what’s not to like?

The Fitbit Charge 2 is available at shop.globe.com.ph.