Fitbit Sense 2 Review: Stressed Out

Worth When Reviewed

$299.99

Greatest Costs Right this moment: Fitbit Sense 2

$290.95

$299.99

Fitbit is rightly thought-about one of many leaders of the exercise tracker market due to early mover benefit and slim, well-featured merchandise just like the Cost 5.

The model has had a more durable time making an attempt to make a killer smartwatch. 2017’s Ionic felt like a prototype, and it even received recalled lately and each buyer refunded after a battery defect.

The Versa watches have been barely higher however have felt like exercise trackers that seem like watches. 2020’s Versa 3 and Sense watches had been the most effective Fitbit smartwatches but, although comparable, and provided music management, choose third celebration apps, and stable battery life.

Now owned by Google, Fitbit has launched the Sense 2, which I’ve had strapped to my wrist for a number of days. It’s a well-made product, however I hesitate to name it a smartwatch as a result of Fitbit has taken away the on-wrist music controls and all third-party apps, together with Google Assistant.

I think about it is because Google needs these options to be unique to its new Pixel Watch, which itself makes use of the Fitbit app to trace well being metrics. The Sense 2 suffers due to its existence.

The principle draw of the Sense 2 over the also-new Versa 4 is the Sense 2’s physique response sensor, which collates a number of knowledge factors to offer you suggestions in your stress ranges. The thought is to focus on your triggers that can assist you perceive what stresses you, and coach you to handle these triggers higher.

It’s a high-quality concept, however the execution is clunky. The Sense 2 nonetheless feels prefer it isn’t fairly completed, and at $299.95/£269.99/€299.95, it’s exhausting to advocate it over an Apple Watch SE or Samsung Galaxy Watch 5.

Design and construct

• Slim on the wrist
• Straightforward to detach bands
• One bodily button

The Sense 2 is probably the most premium feeling Fitbit you will get, although it’s not as high-end as the unique Sense, which had a chrome steel end and a metal ring across the edges of the display screen. This was used to take sensor readings to measure stress.

As an alternative, the Sense 2 has an aluminium body and overlays the sensors on prime of the black bezels across the show. No fancy metal right here, but it surely’s nonetheless a great trying watch.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

My brushed gold mannequin appeared good although, with a lightweight gray strap. It’s comfy and comes with small and enormous sizes within the field together with a charging cable.

The pebble form of the physique is similar to the Versa collection and it’s exhausting to inform them aside. A clue that it’s the Sense 2 is on the underside that sits in your wrist as you put on it, with a curved steel design indicating the inclusion of the brand new physique response sensor you can’t get on any Fitbit.

Fortunately the corporate has ditched the unreliable contact sensor button of the primary Sense in favour of a bodily button on the Sense 2. It’s a lot simpler to push and works higher when sporting gloves. There’s additionally a single speaker slit on the suitable edge for taking calls and speaking to Amazon’s Alexa assistant.

Although a full dimension watch, it’s comfy to put on all day and evening to trace steps, coronary heart fee, and sleep constantly. It could possibly constantly monitor your blood oxygen ranges whilst you sleep, and Fitbit’s monitoring of sleep normally stays among the best within the recreation, with clear metrics and options like snore detection in case you pay for Fitbit Premium.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Health and sports activities monitoring

• Tracks a number of workouts and sports activities
• Strong outside GPS
• Create many knowledge units

As ever, this Fitbit is at its finest when monitoring health exercise. From strolling to working, swimming to biking, and a load of different sports activities, the Sense 2 does a stable job of recording all of them.

Fitbit’s software program has been up to date from the unique Sense, and it’s significantly better for it. I discovered the Sense 2 fairly responsive, with menus flowing and buttons reacting instantly – a low bar, however older Fitbit watches have been very laggy.

It’s now based mostly on clearer ‘tiles’ you possibly can swipe by utilizing the touchscreen. They’re devoted screens for data on coronary heart fee, steps, exercise, sleep, train, and physique responses.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The core Fitbit expertise continues to be wonderful. With built-in GPS, the Sense 2 simply and precisely tracked my outside run routes, even once I left my cellphone at residence.

I do know my approach across the Fitbit app after a number of years, however it’s nonetheless not very person pleasant. It’s important to dive into menus a number of layers deep to vary the watch face (which you’ll be able to’t do on the watch) or discover methods so as to add associates. The latter permits you to preserve a frontrunner board of steps towards your mates if you need some wholesome competitors.

The app can also be the place you possibly can monitor your interval by letting you manually enter your final begin date into the calendar. It could possibly then allow you to predict your subsequent interval, and ship you notifications to remind you while you may get your subsequent.

Henry Burrell / Foundry

Physique response and different sensors

• Tracks adjustments in temper
• ECG perform
• Options restricted to paid Premium

‘Physique response’ is new to Fitbit and unique to the Sense 2. Fitbit says the brand new physique response sensor measures steady electrodermal exercise (cEDA) to detect adjustments in your physique. Mixed with coronary heart fee, coronary heart fee variability, and pores and skin temperature, the watch can immediate you when it measures a change and asks you to log tour temper: burdened, unhappy, calm, pleased, annoyed, and different moods.

On the unique Sense, you needed to determine to take a temper studying by choosing the app and putting your palm over the display screen, touching the sensors round it. It took two minutes to take a studying and also you needed to keep in mind to do it steadily to assemble knowledge.

Now, the cEDA system can monitor your alleged temper on a regular basis utilizing its electrodermal sensor so that you don’t have to recollect to do a spot-check studying (which you continue to can if you need). It additionally means you’re much less more likely to solely take readings while you’re actually stressed and excited about it.

The continual monitoring is sweet insofar that it flags obvious adjustments in your temper, however I can’t assist however really feel a watch that buzzes me on a regular basis to ask how I’m feeling and if that feeling is stress is annoying. You possibly can flip off the physique response notifications and also can obtain a weekly abstract in case you choose.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The app spits out a stress administration rating, however you must take at the very least 500 steps, put on the Sense 2 for at the very least 14 hours, and put on it to mattress on a given day to get it. One in all my scores was 76/100, the upper the quantity the higher you’ve managed stress. The rating is damaged down by responsiveness to stressors, exertion from train, and sleep patterns.

There’s a honest stage of element in case you dig into the app, however as with different Fitbit units, you’ll solely get the deepest element in case you fork out for the paid Fitbit Premium service. This prices $9.99/£7.99/€8.99 monthly or for an annual price.

Fitbit is without doubt one of the few health tracker manufacturers that prices a subscription price to get knowledge insights. Purchase an Apple Watch or a Garmin or Polar health watch and also you get these insights free bar the price of the watch itself. It’s a draw back to purchasing a Fitbit, particularly one as costly because the Sense 2.

You do get some genuinely helpful mindfulness audio periods in case you fork out although, in addition to entry to tons of exercise courses. For those who can afford the subscription, it’s price it – but it surely irks that it’s paid within the first place. One of the helpful metrics, your Day by day Readiness rating that assesses in case you’re able to train once more, is locked behind Premium’s wall

Another non-Premium however key options on the Sense 2 aren’t turned on by default, and aren’t surfaced properly on the watch or within the app. There’s a ECG (electrocardiogram) sensor on the watch to search for indicators of atrial fibrillation (Afib).

However I didn’t realise the Afib function was off for almost per week – I discovered it by tapping on the guts fee tile within the Right this moment view, then swiping by to a second display screen and noticed a pop as much as ‘Be taught extra’ about it, the place I may flip it on. This isn’t good app design!

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Smartwatch options

• No music controls or playback
• No third celebration apps
• Hobbled notification interplay

The Sense 2 has misplaced some smartwatch performance in comparison with the unique Sense. Though there’s built-in GPS that recorded my run routes, the Sense 2 annoyingly not helps and sort of on-board music playback, so I needed to take my cellphone with me to hearken to music.

Bafflingly, Fitbit has additionally eliminated any sort of music controls too, so you possibly can’t pause or change monitor out of your wrist.

To prime it off, the Sense 2 additionally not helps any third-party apps. There weren’t many accessible on the Fitbit platform, however one of many good ones was Spotify. It’s gone now, and Fitbit confirmed to Tech Advisor they aren’t coming again.

It would properly be as a result of Google needs to maintain its music and smartwatch options unique to its new Pixel Watch, which has Fitbit health options, and preserve the Fitbit model as health solely. Nevertheless it’s galling that the Sense 2 is much less succesful than its two yr outdated predecessor for music playback.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Maybe even weirder is the absence of Google Assistant on this Google-made Fitbit. On older fashions you might select between Assistant and Amazon Alexa, whereas on the Sense 2 you possibly can solely use the latter.

Fitbit says the Sense 2 will sooner or later achieve help for Google Maps flip by flip navigation and Google Pockets for contactless NFC funds, however I couldn’t take a look at them because it’s launching with out each.

Fitbit Pay doesn’t help both of my UK banks (and barely any main UK banks normally) so I used to be not in a position to take a look at Fitbit Pay, both.

The one remotely smartwatch factor the Sense 2 can do is take calls in your wrist by the speaker and ship you notifications you get in your cellphone. The previous works, however the speaker distorts fairly a bit and isn’t enjoyable to make use of. Notifications work properly and are constant, however you possibly can solely reply to them on the watch in case you are utilizing an Android cellphone – iPhone is view solely.

If you need a Fitbit with first rate smartwatch options, you’re higher off hopping on Amazon and shopping for an older Fitbit Sense or Versa 3 – which is disappointing.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Battery life and charging

• Multi-day battery life, if erratic
• All the time-on show dents longevity
• Fast charging

Battery life on the Sense 2 was erratic however usually stable. Even with the always-on show (AOD) turned on (it’s off by default) I received three days between prices utilizing the watch 24/7 for GPS runs and to trace my sleep.

With the AOD off, it ought to final you 4 or 5 days. This is without doubt one of the finest causes to purchase a Sense over the equally priced Apple Watch SE – you get multi-day battery life and the choice for an AOD. Most Apple Watches normally solely final a day at finest.

Charging is by way of the together with USB-A cable with a proprietary finish that clips magnetically to the again of the watch. It takes about an hour to completely cost, and Fitbit says a 12 minute cost will get you an additional day of energy, which is about proper.

Worth and availability

The Fitbit Sense 2 is accessible now globally and prices $299.95/£269.99/€299.95 for a Bluetooth model. There’s no 4G mannequin.

This places it in the identical ballpark because the Apple Watch SE 2 at $249/£259/€299 or the $279/£269/€299 Samsung Galaxy Watch 5.

For those who use an iPhone, I like to recommend shopping for the SE as an alternative of the Sense 2. It’ll work higher together with your cellphone, although it doesn’t have the blood oxygen or ECG options of the Sense 2. The identical applies in case you are on Android – go for the Galaxy Watch.

In case you are a eager runner, you may choose a watch you can load music onto, because the Sense 2 has now misplaced this function. Sarcastically, the unique Sense may even be the higher purchase on this case, or the even cheaper Versa 3.

The Polar Pacer is a superb, cheaper choice if you need a slew of health monitoring options with no subscription wanted.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Verdict

The Fitbit Sense 2 is a stable product that does what it units out to do fairly properly, however its stress administration options are extra area of interest than the Google Assistant and music playback options which have been stripped from it in comparison with the unique.

If you wish to rely steps, monitor all method of train, monitor sleep, and try to work out why you’re so burdened, then it’s a sensible choice – if somewhat costly. The watch has virtually no smartwatch options in any respect save for replying to texts in case you use Android and is finest considered a health tracker within the form of a watch.

It’s so much to pay for a watch that holds again options the {hardware} can address, after which makes you pay a subscription to see all of your knowledge and insights. In case you are already all-in on Fitbit (or wish to be) it’s a good selection, however Apple individuals ought to get an Apple Watch and Android individuals can be higher served by another health watch from Polar or Garmin.