Fitbit - Charge 6

Get a Fitbit Charge 6, now on sale at $ 100. Great battery life, and does the tracking you want.

I bought the pixel watch 3 41mm and it's been great HOWEVER there are serval deal-breakers to consider. The battery life is okay, you just have to get used to charging it daily (especially if you reply to messages or take calls on it) Health tracking features and sleep tracking is amazing (I've Fitbit charge 6 and the results are extremely close if not exactly the same BUT the pixel watch 3 during heavy runs is off by 10 beats and sometimes by 1-4bpm. (Which I believe is lack of accuracy on Fitbit charge 6) Downsides and deal-breakers (my opinion comparing to other watches don't hate me) 1- if you come from a Samsung watch, you'll almost regret buying pixel watches. On Samsung watches you can transfer photos to your watch) pixel watch 3 doesn't let save pics on your watch, though you have 32 GB. 2- Pixel watch 3 doesn't allow you to listen to music from the watch itself. (Speakers) It forces you to have YouTube music or Spotify subscriptions to be able to listen to music from the watch and even that, you must be connected to earbuds. In a nutshell, you can't go out with your watch only for a run without earbuds and expect to listen to music. 3- pixel watch 3 doesn't let you measure oxygen in demand. 4- pixel watch 3 doesn't measure stress on demand 5- pixel watch 3 doesn't give you real temperature measuring data because on the Fitbit app the temperature shows (-0, -1.5) etc it doesn't give you actual skin temperature like apple and galaxy watches 6- pixel watch 3 most important feature lose of pulse detection doesn't work in Canada and the USA yet 7- pixel watch 3 on Fitbit app measures calories throughout the day and by the end the day tells you you burnt 2k-3k calories unlike Samsung and Apple watches that just tracks how much calories you burnt working out only. Basically, the app doesn't distinguish between the calories you burned from your workout and the calories you burnt while resting. It combines it. Overall those are some limitations I've experienced with the pixel watch 3. The biggest deal breaker is being unable to play music from the watch itself or be able to transfer photos to the watch. Otherwise why 32gb! Buy the pixel watch 3 if you can put up with fitbits weird way of presenting burnt calories, and the lack of oxygen on demand measuring, lack of actual skin temperature in C or F and other things I listed. It's truly a great device for just runs, workouts and heart rate tracking that's all. If you're looking for a "smart watch" I believe Google's limitations makes it seem like the pixel watch is a smart band in a smart watch body. Highly recommend the Fitbit charge 6.

I would only recommend the pixel watch 3 if you are not from Canada or the United States because then you can use loss of pulse detection because I believe that's a very important features it's the main reason I actually bought the watch but it doesn't work where I live so it's pointless. I recommend you wait for a few months until the price drops and you'll be better but don't buy it right now it's like 600 Canadian dollars here

You can actually do what I did. I'm an abuser of the 6 months free trial so I had one account set up with the pixel watch3 and I created a new email with Gmail and used it with Fitbit to get 6 months free trial and now I use that with my charge 6. Or you can forget a device and connect the other on same account it was smooth for me. You just can't use both devices in one account. In terms of advantages of pw3 over charge 6, I 100% promise you it's not worth it. 99% of the time the results of the heart rate during weightlifting, running etc is barely 2-5 BPM only one time it was 10 beats difference during a run but other than that for two months they are the same.. heck even same sleep, same awake time same skin temperature, same breaths per min, same resting heart rate, same everything. They are using the same algorithm. But if you want me to be honest, I actually put my pixel watch 3 on sale on Facebook marketplace because I didn't like the fact that I have to charge it daily. trust me, the first few days everything will be good, you'll be okay with charging it everyday, but then after that, you're going to get fed up of charging it daily. I literally went to bed and my pixel watch 3 was fully charged and my Fitbit charge 6 when I woke up, the Fitbit charge 6 was 97% and the pixel watch dropped to 79%. by the end of the day, the pixel watch 3 was at 15% with always on display of course, and my Fitbit charge 6 with a 63% with always on display. I would only recommend the pixel watch 3 if you want to be able to reply to text messages and use wear os. for the most part, the watch useless in my opinion. You can't put pictures on it you can't put music on it it's pointless. Currently my plan is to buy Galaxy watch 5 pro and use it for the wear OS futures and the Fitbit charge 6 will be more than amazing for my workouts and sleep.

My charge 6 won’t stay connected through my phone. Disconnects half way through a walk most of the time. I changed it to “dynamic” from “phone” and it works better, but it isn’t accurate. One day it had me walking to the next city over during my lunchtime walk.

It's a good device for the price but if i has an iphone i would take an AW

I like mine. There are a bunch of reviews online that say the Fitbit inspire 3 legs behind in step count accuracy but for my purposes it's perfectly good. If I know that the step count I've gotten is likely less than the step count I've taken, I'm pretty happy with that. I use the food tracking, exercise tracking and step counter the most. My son swims and for that reason I bought him a charge 6 because that one can track swimming but I didn't need that so I stayed with the inspire 3. I like that there are a lot of band choices for the inspire 3. I've had mine for just shy of a year and I've been pretty happy with it.

I spent the past 10 years in the Fitbit world and earlier this year crossed over to the Apple Watch world. I was using a fitbit charge 6 that was far more basic (not really a watch either) and it lasted about 4-5 days on a charge. The thing about it is is that I knew what to expect when switching. I fully expected to have less battery life and that I was going to probably be charging my new watch every day or every other day. This was actually the biggest reason why I hesitated to moving to the Apple Watch for a bunch of years. The Apple Watch is far more sophisticated than anything that I was used too, so I understood why the battery didn’t last as long. The reality is for me this is not a big deal. I already charge a bunch of other devices already every day. This is just another one. Do I wish that I could get at least one more day out of the charge? Absolutely! At the same time I do recognize that there’s probably a very good reason why the battery is as it is. The big question is how much more expensive would the watch be with a much better battery? Are there risks involved? Is it worth the extra cost to get an extra day or two out of the battery? Would it be safe? What would it do to the lifespan of the battery in the watch? Those are just a couple questions that are popping into my mind as I write about this, but I think that just demonstrates that there may be a few reasons why they haven’t pushed advancing the battery - which I am also fairly confident they could do if they really wanted too.

Just got a watch pro 2 and It is NOT the watch for tracking. When I start a workout, it seems to track steps alright but while not working out, it barely tracks ANY of my steps around the house. Literally off by 1000-2000+ in the evening. I also have a Fitbit Charge 6 and that is much more accurate when it comes to just about everything. Decent battery life too.

I adore my Charge 6 and I bought it last year knowing Google is trying to phase them out. (Couldn't resist the sale price!) In the past I've had some of the original Fitbit trackers: I had the original Classic, a Fitbit One, a Luxe, the Versa, and Versa 2. I enjoyed all of them, especially the Versas and for some reason the One. So the Charge 6 to me is like a happy medium: it's a basic tracker in a wristband, not a smart watch. So it doesn't do everything, but it's got a pretty sleek form factor and it does the basics quite well. I use mine the way it was intended: an activity tracker! I can log my walks and runs, connect it like a heart rate monitor to gym equipment and fitness apps, and... That's pretty much it for me. I like hitting 10k steps and seeing the little animation. I like hopping on a spin bike and seeing my heart rate. I like going for a run and seeing what zone I'm in. It's super basic and that's what I enjoy. The only thing I miss is that my Versas had a C25K app that I liked a lot, but I knew when I bought the Charge 6 that it wouldn't have this functionality... Although I do think it's a missed opportunity.

I got a Fitbit charge 6 works good 🚶‍♂️👍

My Charge 6 is about 18 months old and has terrible problems with charging/battery life. Often depletes battery in less than 2 days, despite using the most battery-friendly settings. I love the features and the small size of it, and strongly prefer its rectangular design to the round design found on many other brands. However, I think mine underestimates mileage fairly significantly. I have compared measurements on my Charge 6 with measurements on my walking companions’ fitness watches and mine consistently measures less mileage, despite starting and ending walk tracking at the same place and time.

This is my feeling exactly. The Charge 6 is exactly the size I want. My charge 6 is 18 months old and has had massive battery health issues for a few months now, but I am on the fence between rolling the dice and buying a new Charge 6 or buying a cheaper knock-off on Amazon (concerns about less accuracy). I don’t want anything bigger on my wrist all day, which eliminates almost all of my other options.

the [Fitbit Charge 6 ](https://amzn.to/4fQM4CE)is great overall but i would go for it if you care mostly about sleep traking, if you are more interested in gym and workout in generaly, i would go for [Garmin vivoactive 5](https://amzn.to/3CDMeiH) It's a bit more expensive but it's a more solid overall

I just got it a week ago and it's really great except for the ECG region thingy. It's pretty accurate, small, convenient and you barely feel you are wearing it.

Not sure tbh and when i got it i didn't really look online when the next model will be released. To me this is good and the price as well. The app is also good and straightforward, premium membership is useless, i basically use it for sleep, gym and steps and it does that very well.

My seventh Fitbit died last week (from Luxe to Versa to Charge 5 and 6, this was my second in-warranty replacement), white line on the screen to no screen at all within 24 hours. So with some Target credit I decided to go with a Garmin Instinct for $200. The GPS is much, much more accurate (even when not paired with my phone), the app tracks a lot more information than the Fitbit app did and takes up a third of the space on my phone. I miss the constant step updates; the Garmin just updates every minute. That's about the only drawback.

I love my charge 6. My main wants in a watch are small size, sleep tracker, mileage/step counter (I walk and hike), and alarm/stopwatch/timer. Charge 6 checks all these boxes with flying colors

I did a recent deep dive researching fitness wearables and wound up going with the FitBit Charge 6. If he wants more smartwatch functionality (texting, phone calls, voice to text), go with the Apple Watch. I intentionally didn’t want that so I went with the FitBit. The app is really easy to use and the watch itself is really discrete and light. I wear it while lifting, tennis, kickboxing, swimming, etc. and have never had an issue. Battery lasts about a week too which is really convenient.

The Apple watch has no oxygen monitoring. Battery life is approx. 1 day. The Charge 6 does it all. Batt life 7 days. I think it is just fine for exercise monitoring. I highly recommend it.

I have a charge 6 for about 10 days. I can tell how bad the software is, unstable and unreliable. Just last night it didn't record my sleep status properly, it changed the data collection items randomly. Honestly I won't recommend...

Same here, but I'm considering changing from my Fitbit Charge 6 to the Pixel Watch 3. If anyone has made that switch, I'd welcome your advice.

This is the same reason I've been considering Whoop for the longest time. But I just don't think I can commit to the lifetime subscription cost. Currently wearing a Charge6 and it's been fine for now. I came from Apple Watch, but found it too uncomfortable wearing that and a mechanical watch.

Had a charge 5 for over 3 years. Battery was still lasting a week but felt the last half of the battery was dying a bit faster than before. The charge did pretty much everything I really cared about for just day to day stuff. I have an Apple Watch but the short battery life just kills it for me for every day but I will use it if I’m going somewhere. Was mostly happy with the charge 5 as a simple fitness tracker, biggest complaint was comparing the heart rate on it vs Apple Watch or polar monitor the charge way overestimated once I was at about 70% max heart rate. I had heard the 6 had a better algorithm for heart rate and they had a ok sale for Black Friday so I figured I’d grab one. So far so good, need to do a head to head with my old one and see if the heart rate is different. I didn’t abuse my 5 but didn’t baby it either. Wore it most every day for over 3 years and the biggest issue I had was having to reset it to get it to sync again but that seemed to have gotten better recently to. I know I see people saying theirs didn’t last a year but I can’t say that was my experience.

Charge 6 (and Charge 5) built in GPS is absolutely terrible.

The Charge 6 is very good. I have had every Charge from 2 through 6 and the 6 is the best of them. The built in GPS is terrible, but I just have it use my phone GPS.

Yes, it is. I like my Charge 6. I’ve had it for 6 months and it performs well.

I've been with Fitbit since the Charge 4, currently on the 6 and I love it. There are complaints here or there but I don't have the same experience as others on here. I just want blood pressure logging in the app and a new Charge 7 with some solid updates compared to the 5 to the 6.

I had a Charge 5 before who died after I started to swim, but my Charge 6 is quite OK, after more than six month since purchased including swimming three times per week. HR checked in parallel with the blood pressure monitor and looks fine. 7 days batter is a blast. All other indicators looks. OK. If you are more in sport than in health tracking I guess that Charge will not satisfy you need, but if are a mainstreamer user focus more on health the device is quite OK.

yes I know, I already had a fitbit charge 5 and it was perfect for me but... it broke after 1 year. It's not an isolated incident and the 6 has the same issue. I don't want to pay that much money every year to buy a new fitbit.

I guess it depends on what you want. I only wanted sleep and RHR tracking. I'm not interested in tracking my workouts just timing them is fine. And my Charge 6 does the job.

The GPS itself is really poor. It drains the battery extreme quickly, inaccurate, and most of the time it needs a lot of time to find signal. I bought the charge 6 because I ride bike and track the rides with GPS, but this tracker is good for nothing. Waste of money.

I've had my Charge 6 for just over 1 year. It's as accurate as any watch device for the fitness and health measures I care about. I am very happy with it.

I love my charge 6. I would buy another.

I love my Charge 6. If it broke, I would instantly buy another.

I've had both a Charge 5 and Charge 6. The Charge 5 died less than a week after the 1-year warranty expired. The Charge 6 died about a month after the 1-year warranty expired.

Same here some died before the warranty e fired got replaced. Onwas my mistake went swimming with one. Last one charge lasted 4 years, went swimming and it stopped. My charge 6 is doing great for now

Hey, I decided to get the fitbit charge 6 and I'm really happy with it! It certainly has its moments where it thinks my heart rate is higher than it actual is, but it very quickly fixes itself. So far I haven't had any issues with battery life or usage which is good too

Personally wouldn't recommend it. Had mine a few months and it's functional. Some key stuff it doesn't do that I really thought it would given how it's advertised, like on demand SpO2 measurements. Also it's really glitchy, the software bugs, it desyncs from the phone and loses data every so often. Sensors at night seem unreliable at times etc...also the battery quality is dropping dramatically very quickly. Only had it like 3 months and already gone from lasting 4-5 days to needing a charge every other day. I mean it's okay for an entry level product, but it still feels lower quality to me than expected for what I paid. I would either go cheaper, or a better brand.

My Fitbit Charge 6 tracker works fine with my Peloton bike+; it did stop exporting correctly to Fitbit for a short time, but seems to be resolved now. The Charge is able to send heart rate info to the bike, and workouts show up in the Fitbit app. I see lots of complaints about the new Fitbit app UI but I think it’s gotten much better.

Works well with my Fitbit Charge 6 tracker as well ; I don’t like to use my smartwatch for exercise

Likes: Sleep scoring and display breakdowns of time in light rem, deep, awake is useful. You can get a good idea of sleep patterns.... Ie getting to sleep @ same/different times. Averages in ea sleep stage over time. Exercise zone minutes and steps are useful data points Data accuracy: Some nuances where device gets tricked on # of steps when on a boat for instance. Wake up and you got 40 steps while asleep ;-). Overall not worried, or expect data perfection. Connecting google wallet to pay using touch is useful. Doesn't work with all cards so investigate the list of supported cards before buying if you want this feature. 7 days on a charge is nice. 3rd party chargers don't work Premium software subscription is expensive unless you relish workout, and meditation videos. Dislikes: Poor quality. I've owned 4 of these Fitbit branded devices. Seen a lot. 14 months use of a $150 fitness watch, charge 6, seems lousy. When Fitbit owned, quality build was much better as were support and sw updates. Previous devices lasted for years. Google support offered 35% off on a new purchase. The discount turned out to be < 20 bucks, less than 20%. Google hasn't put R&D back into their fitness trackers like Fitbit did. Charge 6 has been out > 2 years. Support all off shored. I opted to buy a replacement vs switch brands and learn a new interface. I have sadly recalibrated (lowered) my expectations to expect about a year of service for 100 bucks or so. 200 with Premium subscription.

I have a fitbit charge 6 and i love it, have had previous generations before or the inspire. Main issue i have with the charge 6 or inspire is the fact it doesn’t do flights climbed (i do a lot of stairs in work). I like it has a small screen though and shows minimal phone notifications and I didn’t want something distracting. Battery lasts me like 5 days regularly which I love. Surprised to see here people say the fitbit isn’t accurate but I’ve never had another type of wearable so it may well be inaccurate and I never realised!

I wouldn't recommend the Charge 6. It consistently has syncing problems, and the band randomly just pops off. I have premium, and it is not worth it with this device. I don't doubt that Fitbit will respond to this with some pablum, but it doesn't change the fact that these two issues are widespread and often reported. I've worn Fitbits since the beginning, and the newer models have nice screens, but they are inferior products. I won't buy another from the Charge line.

I've got a Fitbit charge 6. Apart from the app every now and then playing up, it's doing everything I need - workouts and tracking food.

I've had the Charge 6 for over a year (16 months) and I really like it. I wanted a fitness tracker and not a smart watch as I like the small size. I wear it 24/7 including while playing sports and this fits the bill perfectly. Small enough that it doesn't get snagged or impede any wrist movement. Love that it only needs to be charged once or twice a week at most. Using the built-in GPS does drain the battery but I don't find myself using that feature very often as I usually have my phone on me for cycling & running. The only time I don't have my phone is during workouts at the gym, but no need for GPS in those instances. I also wear it swimming and so far it's held up fine. I do remove it to shower as I've heard eventually exposure to soap can degrade the rubber seals that make it waterproof. My hope was also that it would last at least 2 years and so far it's looking like that won't be a problem! I've definitely beat the crap out of it skateboarding and as others have said, the case is a bit scuffed but it's holding it quite well!

It’s a neat device while can you keep it working. Don’t expect it to last more than 1-2 years. If you’re ok with that, buy it. Yes, you will see some people say theirs have lasted several years but between me, my gf, friend group etc. We rebuy them every ~2 years cause they brick

Yep, will not turn on at all. Warranty is only 1 year is US. Again, if you’re expecting a device to last 2+ years, go with something else. I’ve been thru 3 in 4 years. My gf has been thru 2 in 2 years.

So funny you ask because I’ve had one that I took in the pool 100+ times and it lasted me 2 years. had another that clearly bricked the first time I got in a pool after only 6 months. Since then, I do not get mine wet anymore. They’re all supposed to be waterproof but I think the quality control is ass

They advertise water resistance up to 50m and have a “water lock” mode for swimmers. That’s what I think is bullshit

Charge 6 is great. Just know they don’t typically last more than 1-2 years. You get what you pay for in that regard. You’ll see a bunch of comments about how people have has theirs working for years but I would not have that expectation and you’ll be happy. The average life ive seen within my friend group is about 18 months before they brick. I’m on my 3rd in 4 years and mine bricked again in 4 months but luckily its under warranty.

yea, they are embarrassingly bad products when it comes to durability / longevity. They are NOT waterproof no matter what they market. As long you have that expectation, you’re good. I hate when people act like the crowd who have devices that brick are the minority. I think it’s the opposite lol

I bought a Chargr 6 this year, after my Charge 4 died. I fucking hate my Charge it. It constantly demands ny phone to be updared, it stops functioning when I'm i a different time zone... Don't do it

I’d recommend to choose another brand, FitBit is not it anymore. Bought Charge 6 after Charge 5’s wristband holder metal piece broke off the pebble and Charge 6 worked well for about 4 months. Then one day it self-updated and installed some system upgrades - then this thing stopped syncing with any device via bluetooth. $250 in a garbage. Their support team is sending me same instructions for the third week in a row. Don’t waste your time with a phasing out product!

I switched from fitbit to Samsung watch back to fitbit. I went with the charge 6 and it's worth it to me. Much more accurate. Battery life is amazing, I can go up to 9 days without a charge. It tracks my workouts better than samsung does and tracks sleep better if you care about that at all! I love mine.

I had two charge 6s and both stopped working. My latest one stopped working after a hot yoga session. I just ordered an oura ring.

Agreed with this. The GPS on all charges is awful. If you are okay with using a phone for your GPS, the rest of the functions work well enough

the fitbit is much better displaying health related aspects. I have had a Charge 6 for years. The new study related Apple Watch I just got runs down on battery really quickly, needs charging about every 15-17 hours

If you care about correct mesurements yes it does. For people sayint changing to garmin was much better, I advice you to check quantified scientist on YouTube. The guys analyzes data for most smartwatches and healthtrackers. For sports specific, garmin is good with a heart rate strap on. For the rest it isnt. Charge 6 qas my choise because of this. Price/quality of mesurements is top !

I upgraded from the Inspire 3 to the charge 6, I’m back to using the inspire due to the annoying and constant syncing issues with the charge 6. I think the inspire will work just fine

Love mine. I wouldn’t expect precision performance out of it, but it generally does all of its advertised functions pretty well. To me, the big selling point is the 7-days battery life and low cost. Worth being off by a handful of heartbeats per day.

I had the same issue about breathing rate tracking, wearing the watch slightly snug and higher up my wrist at night did the trick and it's working again.

The EKG on both the Fitbit Charge 5 and Charge 6 doesn't work. Avoid both. I own them. (regrets)

The only complaint I have with it is the rhr is pretty inaccurate. They don't disclose exactly how its tracked, but it has my rhr always at an average of my lowest rates during sleep.

I have a charge 6 and love it.

Charge 6, perfect and no regrets. If you're looking for a no nonsense fitness band then yeah Charge 6 is the one. Most of the other features are included within the app

Got the charge 6 and still use it, it's amazing for what I need it for. I simply was looking for something that can accurately track health metrics and this does that. Unless you want a more smartwatch experience rather than simple health tracking then I highly suggest you get a Pixel watch 3, which is replacing the Sense

Funny that people still find my post lol. After the charge 6 I actually upgraded to a Suunto Race S, never looked back. But I will put some respect on the charge 6, small but mighty that little booger

you are probably right and tends to be the end result. You are generally better off sticking with the more well known brands. Ignoring blood pressure your cheapest option for what you want is fitbit charge - but does include a screen - but reasonably small.

fitness bands I feel are more for health based reasons as generally their hr and gps isn't great for activity (fitness bands are like amzfit band, huawei band, fitbit charge etc). They have started to increase smart functionality and are getting closerto a smartwatch. Smartwatches are more for either companion to your phone (enabling phone features on your watch) - wear os on android or apple watch on iPhone - they can replicate a lot of what the fitness watches offer but its via 3rd party - so not an complete eco system. Then you get yoru fitness brands - garmin, coros, polar and suunto - where their focus is health, fitness and training metrics and analytics - the bonus of these wattches is long battery life and sport specific metrics. And there are the others which are a sort of cross between wear os/apple watch and the fitness watches - huawei , amazfit, xiaomi etc (and loads of chineese branded watches in this category) - these watches can provide great value for money, however health, fitness and training metrics can be much more hit and miss than the fitness watches. As to which is best for you would depend on your focus and what you want a smartwatch to do - yours post seem to be all health based - its worth noting that no watch is a medical device and while some components may have a form of medical approval (fda etc be advised that the type of medical approval sign off doesn't make them a medical device its just confirming they can provide to a specific level - which isn't necessary a medical level that hospitals etc can use). From a health perspective any all of these watches can work for you including fitness bands - just depend on the level of detail and what features you want. Personally I would suggest a fitbit charge for you or alternatively the pixel watch 3 (assuming you have an android). Why fitbit - they give a fair amount of depth to their health metrics and they provide an easy to understand level of insight to their data (note if you want stress detail and sleep score detail you will need a sub). PS - this will provide you with most of the stuff you wanted plus up to 7 day battery life. If you wanted all those features (except blood pressure) in a very classy package you could look at a withings - however I feel they are a bit hit and miss on some of their results, and while you do get a cut out screen note you will have to consume most of your data with the app. So why would you get a watch for health features: Sleep - I pefer one that focuses on recovery as duration is generally fairly accurate for most, sleep stages to a degree is a waste of time (no watch can accurate distinguish between light & rem - even sleep clinics struggle) - thus how a sleep aids your body in recharging makes sense to me - this is a focus for oura, garmin, whoop, polar and to a degree fitbit - garmin is the best at incorporating sleep into other features. Stress - the impact to your body's ANS - can be useful driver with other metrics to show how your body is reacting to various inputs (i.e. high stress during sleep can suggest you coming down with an illness/injury/over training - incorporating this into other metrics like training readiness can help you reduce training and instead maybe take a recovery day enabling your body to recover/have more energy to fight an illness - effectively reducing the chance of injury/illness. This is great summary by garmin of what each health metric is and what it offers and why you might want to track it. Not all garmins have all these features but most do, and most of the other watches have similar features but not to the same level of detail. [https://www.garmin.com/en-GB/garmin-technology/health-science/](https://www.garmin.com/en-GB/garmin-technology/health-science/)

If you are using a watch that is older than 3 years its very likely (outside of apple watch, garmin, coros, polar and suunto) that it doesn't come close to matching current models accuracy levels - especially as most brands (wear os / apple / garmin / coros / polar / suunto / fitbit / huawei / amazfit) update the sensor and gps chipset every 2-3 years (if not more frequently) and there have been significant improvements all around. For example current garmins are either using the elevate 4 or elevate 5 HR sensor (from health 24/7 perspecive virtually immaterial difference in results, but from an activity perspective especially around strength and cycling their is a more marked improvement - plus the elevate 5 sensors include ECG and baseline temp monitoring) however the elevate 4 was a significant jump from the elevate 3 sensor (4 veritcal led lights) which was an even bigger jump from the sensor prior to that (3 leds in a triangular shape). Huge jumps and leaps have been made in sleep tracking too, and for most its way more accurate than it used to be - though don't get me wrong it still can be fooled (i.e. sitting/lying and being super inactive (i.e. reading / watching tv) and its possible the watch can potentially record that as sleep. Garmin Forerunner 165 - its on special on Garmin sales at just under $200. (or could look to see what deals you can find for the instinct 2 or vivoactive 5). These are all running pretty much garmin's latest version of sleep tracking which is way better at determining sleep duration (I find start time is rock solid and seldom gets fooled - if it does at the worst it records it as light sleep so doesn't really impaact recovery at all -as would be giving you that as recovery anyway and the recharge rate from light compared to resting is so simliar I haven't noticed a difference in recharge rate; and wake time is rock solid as long as using morning report - cause as soon as you access morning report it switches off sleep - so if you wake up and want to go back to sleep don't access morning report - the morning report front screen includes time so no need to access it until you want to be up and about). The sleep tracking algorithms are from firstbeat and includes the use of accelerometer, HR and HRV compared to the older garmin sleep tracking which per my understanding was accerlerometer based. You could also look at anything from amazift (stick to bip 6, active 2, t-rex3 or balance - as all running most current version of their software and alogorithms); Huawei including Fit 3 is worth a look; and could consider anything from coros, suunto (just released the run which should be around the $200 mark) and polar. And you could also look at fitbit charge 6, sense 2 or vera. There is also xiaomi but their HR isn't as good as the others... But worth noting the accuracy of optical HR is still impacted by skin tone, body comp, hair, tats, weight & size of watch, how you wear it and if doing an activity the activity type - and until you use it there is no way to know if it will be accurate for you or not. However for most people most of the sensors of the brands I have mentioned tend to do a good job re accuracy for 24/7 health metrics and steady state activities (walking, steady running etc).

I am on my 2nd Charge 6. I like it. Holds a 6 day charge. My only bitch is that they keep taking features from it.

i got a fitbit 6 charge a few months ago and its doing all those things for me, and i have zero complaints.

I've had mine and wear 24/7 for almost 14 month now. For sleep tracking it is absolutely stellar. I also wear a Garmin and a Whoop w/armband. The Fitbit is by far the best in my instance for sleep tracking.

Yes I am and the Charge 6 is still the best for my sleep tracking. I'd recommend the Charge 6 if your priority is sleep tracking for sure....perhaps if I wore the Whoop on my wrist I'd have different results with it...the Garmin is a distant third for my sleep tracking.

I think you'll really enjoy having it. I'd give up my Whoop subscription before I'd ever get rid of my Charge 6....not that the Whoop isn't good by any means just speaking from my needs perspective.

I’ve had a Charge 3, a Charge 5 and got a Charge 6 a few months ago. It’s been fine, does everything I need and battery life is great.

It’s not as accurate in counting steps but I like the small form factor. Coming from Versa 2, the new Charge is definitely much more comfortable to wear in bed and I like to use my Charge as alarm too.

Fitbit is fitness tracker. All the other options you mentioned are way more expensive smart watches. I still think Fitbit is good for general health tracking. Plus I really like sleep tracking and found Fitbit Charge comfortable to wear in bed compared to watches.

I have a charge 6 and love it. No problems.

Does anyone have a idea for something comparable to a fitbit Charge 6 ? Ring doesn't work for me since I have to take it offf during Gym Sessions. A the fitness tracker suggested here are all pretty big.I hate wearing a watch usually but the charge was always very lightweight.

I have a Fitbit charge 6. It's way smaller than an Apple or Pixel watch and it has about 5-7 days of battery life. It's also pretty affordable. I mainly use it as a general activity meter with the sleep tracking as an added bonus. It has a bunch of metrics like a readiness index and a suggested cardio load that can be hit or miss but I don't really pay attention to the extra stuff.

Garmin isn't any better, and probably worse as far as subscription services and rip-offs. I was a Garmin user for many, many years, because I was in the ultramarathon scene, but I was always a little envious of my wife's data from her Fitbit. The health stats always seemed more realistic, and the sleep tracking was and is much better. So, now I'm at the point where I really don't want or need all the sports training with chest strap,and gps route tracking that I used my garmins for, so I got a charge 6, just like my wife. Bad timing! Google has really screwed this up, and maybe it's intentional on their part, to kill off Fitbit. My wife is absolutely beside herself. Her fitbits in the past were perfect and simple, very user friendly. Now she (like me) finds herself almost daily having to deal with stupid glitches. I don't know what the solution is. It seems like every fitness tracker today has major problems like this.

I have a charge 5 and it lasted around 2 years. However I am gonna go with charge 6, just because I like the tracking features and when it was working correctly, battery lasted for days not worrying about it and keeping my steps tracking. I would though, buy additional warranty this time.

I highly recommend it. As my first Fitbit, I’ve been wearing it for the past three months, and it has exceeded my expectations. I compared it to the Apple Watch Ultra 2 during a one hour walk, and its heart rate accuracy was nearly identical. Given it’s much lighter on the wrist, it made me question needing a bulky smartwatch. As a sleep tracker, it’s outstanding. While I’m not familiar with the old app interface, aside from screenshots shared on this subreddit, I’m impressed with its design language. I've come to prefer its muted and minimalistic tone over the old color rich interface which I find to be distracting and busy. A five star experience so far.

Had mine for 6 months and so far so good! I'm happy with it.

I've been happy with my Charge 6. Yes, the user experience of the app has been getting worse overall, but honestly even though a lot of jank has been introduced, all of the vital information is still available. I always recommend Fitbit as the affordable option in the fitness tracker landscape. The sensors do very well overall in comparison to other fitness trackers and even outperform Garmin which is the main reason why I haven't gotten a Garmin yet, besides it just being way more expensive. Generally I use [the Quantified Scientist's reviews](https://www.youtube.com/@TheQuantifiedScientist) to judge my purchases around fitness trackers. You can look up specific devices on his channel yourself.

I have the charge 6 and I like it, but I know it's not going to last and I'm thinking I'll probably going to get a Garmin if this dies before the 7 comes out (anyone know when that's going to be?). My only thing is that I like the fact that it doesn't look like a watch. You know it's a tracker. I wear it on my right wrist and wear actual watches on my left. Does Garmin make anything that doesn't look like a big round watch and works as well?

I've had a charge 6 for about a year and a half. It might be me or it might be my device but I would sum it up as 'inconsistent' I've never gotten a HRV value although it always says it's in my personal range. I very seldom get breathing rate but that one at least says no data available. I get REM and a sleep score very infrequently. Usually its Asleep/Restless/Awake with no score. I have it set to use the phone's GPS. Sometimes I would get a map for the walk activity, sometimes not. Since the recent update I never do. Something in the device or the app? IDK. I've been comparing it to a Amazfit Bip 5 which seems to be a lot more consistent but I really like the smaller form factor. Amazfit has a Band 7 but it is rarely mentioned on r/amazfit which makes me suspicious. The internal GPS is not very good and affects battery life. When using the phone's GPS battery life is good, except for the inconsistent results.

The GPS in the Charge 6 is not very good. I always used the phone's GPS. Several times it would lose the signal in the middle of a hike and turn itself off. It does not recover and you can't restart it without ending the activity and starting another one. It may be okay if you stick to large open spaces with an excellent view of the entire sky. The Amazfit Bip 6 has a rectangular shape and an excellent GPS bit it's a 1.97" screen, considerably larger than the 1.6" Galaxy. I have the Active 2 which comes either in a round or square shape but it's bigger too. The Band 7 would b the right size but no GPS.

Usually it worked. I played around with dynamic and it didn't help. A few times using the phone really went off the rails. When I looked at the map there would be a line out to a point 10 miles from where I really was. The miles for the walk weren't to far off. I think the algorithm discards GPS points that are too far out. There are places where any GPS can lose a fix, trees, tall buildings, and so forth. When that happens I think the phone tries to triangulate from cell towers to fake it. The GPS in the Charge 6 pops up a message like 'Lost the signal. Shutting off'. It would be better if it kept trying until you get to a better place and it can lock in again but when it's done it's done. It's probably designed to save the battery but it's annoying. The Aazfit Active 2 GPS is a lot better but it's a lot bigger than what you're looking for.

Got a fitbit charge 6 recently and it's fairly low maintenance. They're is a premium thing, but I don't think I use it and will probably drop it after the free trial is up. I don't think that affects sleep data.

A year ago I test drove an Apple Watch SE and ultimately went with a Fitbit Charge 6 over cost, battery life, and feeling that keeping it charged while also getting sleep tracking was going to be a challenge (previously I used sleep tracking on a Fitbit Luxe and quite liked it— the Luxe's screen died after just under two years). That said, having now had the Fitbit for a year, I will probably go Apple Watch the next time. The deciding factors are: * Build quality. The Charge 6's screen is increasingly unresponsive and internet research backs up a significant population who seem to have them die around the 18mo mark, which I consider unacceptable. * I'm not tracking my sleep as much these days. Between that and how the band shreds the skin on my wrist, switching to a usage model where I take it off at night would be fine. * Native "find my". Being able to reliably locate my iPhone from my wrist is a feature I really liked during my trial and I've had a number of instances over the year where I've wished the Fitbit could do that (its find-phone feature is far more limited and depends on the app having been recently open on the phone). * Rich notifications. That Apple Watch can stream through anything the phone shows is great, especially with smart reply. * Media control, maps. Technically Fitbit has these too, but they suck— the media control is YouTube Music only and walking directions on maps are barebones and sometimes don't work at all.

For fitness features it’s a no brainer. It’s light, unobtrusive, affordable and has a 7 day battery! According to reviews it’s very close to Apple Watch accuracy plus doesn’t have the smart watch bloat. There have been changes to the app since Google buyout and build quality will vary by owners. Make sure you know your consumer rights and keep a receipt.

I've had a Charge 6 for just over a year. No issues with it, I never liked wearing a watch but I'm fine with the size of it.

I bought charge 6 for using google wallet, i use iphone, but it’s limitation to add bank card

I use a fitbit charge 6 and it sucks. The strap burns my irritates my skin so I can only wear it for a bit and the GPS is wildly inaccurate. It bounces all over the place. And yesterday the GPS didn't kick in even though all the settings are on. I regret this purchase.

I'm so confuused because the Quantified Scientist seems to demonstrate that Apple consistently performs better than Garmin in terms of fitness tracking features? [https://youtu.be/kHS8bweLcxQ?si=JQnNPveGH4KJEXBY](https://youtu.be/kHS8bweLcxQ?si=JQnNPveGH4KJEXBY) I'm torn as I simply want a fitness watch, yet Apple seems superior in some ways. I'm coming from a Fitbit Charge 6 which fell of my wrist because the strap connector on them isn't great, so really happy to try anything (that will stay on)

I used to love mine. But you can’t track active burned calories on it anymore in any sensible or easy way. It also refuses to sync with my fitness pal and the battery life on it is horrible and the mag charger would sometimes not charge it at all if something moved it slightly. Like bumped it on the counter or took a step too close to it. When I wore mine at night too, even if my phone was on silent, would vigorously vibrate whenever I got an email- eventhough I don’t even have those settings on on my phone, no matter what setting I had it on and I couldn’t get it to stop. I also found that about a year into having it it doesn’t do anything accurately anymore. They also update it with the worst updates ever. They make the app harder to understand, take away the active burned calories part and it’s nearly impossible to see how long you’ve worked out and it no longer registers when you are working out in any consistent way. I would stay away. I am trying to find another as we speak.

I went from charge 6 to vivoactive 6 and its whole other universe. Its not really worth comparing. Its like thinking about a tracker from 5 years agao vs garmin latest offering.

I wouldn’t recommend the charge 6 to anyone, been using it for 4 months. I ride a motorcycle and it counts that as steps so according to my Fitbit I walked 1.2k steps while i was actually riding my motorcycle and there’s no workaround for this and there are lot of people facing the same issue. The sleep tracking has stopped working and doesn’t show the deep sleep and other insights even though i have the premium membership. It stopped showing breathing rate a few days back. I have not changed any of my habits but it stopped working. Tried resetting, restarting and all steps as the customer care recommended but nothing works. You’re better off with an apple watch or other alternatives

I like my charge 6 but I think the distance/GPS isn’t very accurate, as well as the heart rate during activity. I’m comparing it to a polar heart rate strap I wear when running. The sleep monitor seems very accurate for me

I just bought a Fitbit Charge 6. I love the idea of a ring, but the answers I got on this sub, mainly the one by u/gomo-gomo , made me see: a fitring, for now, is not worth the price. Let's be honest, a fitbit for 160 euro's, or a fit ring for +/- 400 euro's, that's quite a difference. Especially if the expensive option doesn't let me track fitness. I have the Fitbit now for four days, so I guess it's to early to tell. Comfort is fine. Also, I thought my sleep was the reason I feel tired a lot. The Fitbit tells me, my sleep is actually good. Not perfect, but good. This helps me shift my focus to other reasons(probably nutrition). So, that's a big plus for me. I do loathe the auto-sync with my social apps. I do not want that, but got it automatically.

Thanks for sharing! I’ve been getting pretty frustrated with my bulky Garmin Fenix 8 — it’s just not comfortable for sleep or daily wear, and I still need to pair it with a Coros HRM to track BJJ. The Whoop subscription also feels like a money pit over time. The Fitbit Charge 6 looks really promising though, especially since all I care about is solid sleep and resting heart rate tracking. Are you still using all three devices? I just picked up a Charge 6 to test it out, and I also ordered a Whoop armband sleeve — hoping I can slip the Fitbit in there to track BJJ sessions more comfortably.

Thank you, I just picked up a fitbit charge 6 from costco.

I wouldn’t buy it again. It can have a faulty latch for the band, mine falls off all the time. If I could afford a new different watch I would.

Yes. I use a third party band from amazon. The fault is with the watch itself. Not the band. It doesn’t matter which band I use, a light tug will pull the clasp out.

It is also the second charge six I got with the faulty clasp.

How’s the Garmin VivoSmart? Looks similar in size to my current Charge 6. I’ll miss it. I liked the Charge hardware. But the decline in app quality is intolerable.

Absolutely love mine.

Love my Charge 6. My data all feels pretty accurate.

Love my Charge 6, it's the one model I'd recommend to pretty much anybody. Have had mine since the day it came out, nearly flawless in those 19ish months. They aren't giving up on the Fitbit brand, they're just eliminating the larger Fitbit 'smartwatch' style trackers because they have the Pixel Watch. The smaller trackers should continue. App is fine, I've been with Fitbit for nearly a decade and yeah it's different but it's fine, and Premium is not needed.

For the fitness trackers yes, but don't get any non-Pixel-Watch Fitbit watch. I use the Charge 6, the 2 and 4 before that. Never had any issues.

Just got a superb deal on a black charge 6, so good it was rude not to. Anyhow I wear a normal watch on weekends not my Amazfit Trex etc as I don't do workouts or cycling. So I just needed a simple tracker and the charge seemed to fit the bill regardless of what Google is doing with the brand.

I had a charge 6 from fitbit and it would register my pushes as steps when I was out and about. It was great for health monitoring but I decided to get the galaxy watch 7 before I realized that smart drive compatibility only goes to 6 and also it doesn't count my pushes as effectively. I still like it for being able to smart watch and control my music, make calls and texts without having my phone out. But ya.

Died after 4 months. Data was probably accurate before that, much less after. And it totally failed to capture the frustration of dealing with support.

My charge works fine. HR monitor seems to work fine, run tracker seems to work fine too, except GPS takes a bit of time to connect. I don't ask a lot of it but I think it does well for the price.

Love my Charge 6 but heart rate does not work when running or walking fast on treadmill. So if your main form of exercise is running, I would go for a Garmin. If you don't run, you will probably be fine with Charge 6.

Do you have a Polar watch that you can see your heart rate during activities? The heart rate monitor on my Fitbit Charge 6 does not work while running, so I'm trying to figure out how to see it without wearing two watches. Do you wear both watches or do you have the Polar hooked up to an app that you check?

I have the Charge 6. Heart rate monitor does not work well. Does not work at all for running. Other than that, I deal with it. Garmin is the GOAT sports watch however I can't deal with the large size.

That's great that your HR monitor works during runs. Mine will shoot up to 180-190 during runs or any activity where I swing my arms vigorously ......I know in reality I'm around 120-130. Seems to work fine with just general walking around or if I am on stairclimber.

I've had the Charge 6 for awhile now and have had no problems so far. Hope this helps.

I'm using the Google Charge 6. However the readings are off a bit when using the new Fitbit app. I had better readings with my old Fitbit that I was using from 2019. I would have stayed using the Fitbit 2 except my wife gave me the newer Charge 6 for my birthday last week.

I love my charge 6.  Completely replaces a smartwatch for me.  Rarely do I post fan comments, but this is a great product for me.  The size and functionality combo is unique. The integration with my pixel 8 pro is perfect so far.

I take my charge 6 in the shower and tub almost every day and have not had a problem, so ymmv, but I wouldn't take it swimming.  It does have a "water lock" mode but I've never used it.

I've had mine about a year and I love it. It's more than accurate enough for my needs.

I love my Charge 6. Started a few years ago with a Charge 2 and have worked my way up. I don't have premium. I like that I can read it without my glasses and it tracks exactly what I want it to track.

I started with a Fitbit Charge 2 and an now on a Charge 6. I really love them. I only want to track my exercise and heart rate.

The fitbit charge 6 costs 160 USD w/ 6 month fitbit premium subscription , the annual subs is 80 USD So it's a one time fee of 160 + optionally 80 per year Alternatively for say a whoop 5.0 the annual mandatory subscription costs either 200, 264 or 400 for 12 months (you get device included but then it is useless after 12 months if you don't renew) There's a substantial difference from 80 to 200/year I was a fitbit user for long long time, tried the whoop for this year - I really like the screenless device but due to costs I'm considering getting back to fitbit...

I've had the charge 2, charge 4, charge 5, and charge 6. All died in 2 years or less- and because I either wore it in the ocean, pool, or shower.  For the charge 6, I also purchased a 3rd party warranty and so am getting money refunded to me.  I'm in the same boat of not wanting to go back. The only reason I stayed with fitbit so long is because of the smart wake feature. I've lived without it for almost 2 months now- but I have 8 bands and 3 chargers. I feel I'm invested in Fitbit, but their brand is dead, and all resources are going to the Google watch now. 

I just got a Charge 6 and loving it like I did my Charge 5. Fitbit is just exactly what I want, so it works for me. My only complaint over the years is that I miss having an altimeter.

You can get away with something like a bip or active 2 if you're feeling like a splurge. You can even cheap out and get a miband. I think a Fitbit is a better fit for you, like a Charge 6 is a great wellness/health device 

Nope, I’m selling my charge 6 currently. It is incredibly uncomfortable to wear. Even if it’s loose, I wake up at night because my hand is numb. During the day it leaves a red mark (again: it’s loose enough) and my skin became chronically dry underneath. The app is getting worse as well, I have the highest score when I feel like shit and it doesn’t recognise exercise properly. It’s a huge disappointment. I used to have a Versa, that was somewhat better but still, I’ll buy a Garmin or a used Apple Watch.

Obviously no fitness tracker is truly BIFL, but I'm assuming you're after something made well that will last. I've worn a fitbit since around 2017 and have always liked them. That they will go a full week without charging which is important to me, I've always ruled out an apple watch for that reason. My first one (Charge 2) lasted 5 years before it broke (physical damage, I smashed the screen). The second one (Charge 5) lasted 18 months before it wouldn't turn on and was replaced under warranty, that replacement lasted about the same and was replaced under warranty with my current one, a Charge 6. It's a great watch, but after two Charge 5 failures I worry about how well they are made. If this one fails I wouldn't buy another unless it lasts several more years, which is what I would expect from any watch.

Sadly it spends more time charging than doing anything else... I can't even get good fitbit data because the watch has to be charged twice in a 24 hour period. The fitbit charge 6 was a superior device in that respect. I've removed and turned everything off on my gpw3 to the point where i don't use it for anything but the time and fitbit and still, battery doesn't last long enough to have reliable data

Fitbit isn't the issue. It's Google. Google took over in 2021. Every update seems to make Fitbit less reliable. I just started having issues with the Fitbit Charge 6 I've had for a few years in early Aug. It started randomly shutting off any time I tried to use it on a run or walk; basically any time it needed to use GPS. I replaced it with a refurbished one, but THAT was had no battery life to speak of. It would die within a few hours, even when I wasn't doing any activity at all...like while I was asleep! I looked online for advice and tried EVERYTHING. CS was NO HELP AT ALL. Eventually, I just bought a no name fitness tracker off Amazon for $25. It works great, the app is totally free, and it tracks pretty much everything I was tracking with the Fitbit.

I ended up getting a charge 6 and love it. It’s been really useful in tracking my sleep and largely aligns with what my in-lab study showed (no REM sleep lol). Unfortunately, I don’t do well with a CPAP. Just a sensory thing I guess. Anything on my face drives me nuts when I try to sleep, even things that are more or less comfortable like the blue light blocking mask I wasted money on lol. I’m going to do FME with Dr. Newaz, which I’m really excited for. At the least, it’ll open up space so I can get an implant to replace the singular premolar that was pulled when I was a teenager. At best, it’ll fix my sleep. If that doesn’t work, it’s onto MMA, which would probably be for the best anyway. My CBCT showed a very narrow lower airway in addition to my small nasal aperture (though, bizarrely, a decent sized upper airway).

I’m not familiar enough with Garmin+ to know. Honestly kind of a newcomer. Had a Fitbit charge for many years.

Hi, I made the same switch. Enjoyed my charge 6 but I feel that Google will gradually phase out the line. Also, my charge often lost GPS after I started a run. I have a Forerunner 265 and it’s excellent. I tried a 165 first and it was excellent too, I just prefer the glass crystal on the 265. Otherwise they function more or less the same. Haven’t lost GPS on a run with the garmin yet. I feel like the garmin gives me better recommendations for runs and I like the plethora of watch face options and customization. Also the variety and depth of data is definitely superior on the garmin. The interface is a little wonky and takes some getting used to. Highly recommend you find the DC Rainmaker YouTube video for whatever model you end up going with. About a month in, I was very comfortable with the garmin app and interface. But it was more complicated than the Fitbit at first and took some getting used to.

You can try the Fitbit Charge 6. It's more of a fitness bracelet than a smartwatch. It still has a watch-like screen, but it has a built-in GPS so you can track your run without your phone.

It functions well as a step counter and sleep tracker, but the GPS isn't fantastic, and a lot of the 5s and 6s don't make it past the end of the warranty period. I'd probably not recommend it, and instead suggest one of the Fitbits with a different design.

If U don't need ECG, the vivoactive 5/6 is pretty much similar in size (coz the charge 6 is quite wide). If U can get the charge 6 for $99 on Amazon, I think it's still a good deal. There are many more functions like ECg, payment(limited cards), irregular heartbeat and even training loads(that many are complaining). Garmin has other things that's not as good also. Coros pace 3 is also good. Miband/Samsung fit/Huawei band is also a good cheaper alternative

If u don’t use notifications, I think it works great. It pairs even better compared to Android. I only have issues with notifications My GPS on the band doesn’t work and when connected to phone, if my phone is in my bag it doesn’t work as well. (It’s ok if I hold it in my hand). Everything else is quite accurate and good to me.

Agreed happy with my charge 6 got it for 70 bucks open box from Best Buy and it’s been solid.

The calories and heart rate data when cycling and hiking between my Charge 6 and my Polar H9 chest strap is remarkably similar. Also I personally am impressed with the ability of the Charge 6 to automatically start/stop activities such as spinning, cycling, hiking. Things I don’t like : the music control is flaky (works like 50% of the time), not good for swimming (it can either track laps during a swim, or heart rate, but not both!?!?).

my wife's luxe hasn't died still, we've got it for like 5 years. battery is getting bad, can do only 1 day now, just got a charge 6 for her now

>Mainly using the watch for sleep, calorie, and step tracking. Basic tracking for a sub $100 price tag sounds like a good deal for you. I'd say you can upgrade to the Charge 6. I think you'll be happy with it. I didn't want to go back to Fitbit after my last fitbit died a few years ago. But I also didn't want to shell out $200-$300 for a watch when I only care about the very basic bare bones features that is steps, activity tracking, and calorie TDEE. It meets my needs and I'm happy with it.

It’s become a bit of a trend to hate on FitBit. I have a Charge 6, and have been using FitBit for 10 years now! It’s got its flaws, but if you’re looking for a heart rate monitor to record activities and give you a few fun extra stats (sleep, HRV, etc) it’s ideal! I personally love the fact it gives me consistent useful data and tracking without all of the unnecessary stats other watches might offer that I know I would become absorbed in! It’s simple, easy, would recommend!

Unfortunately, Charge 6 is currently the best fitness tracker on the market.

I had a fitbit charge 6 and while it was a good intro, the GPS started playing up and it didn't give me many running stats. I bought a forerunner 255 music about a month ago and love it! Build quality is way better, the running metrics are crazy indepth by comparison, and the activity suggestions have helped me mix things up. 10/10 recommend. I looked at the 165 and 265 and felt that the slightly older 255 was a good middle ground. The MIPs screen is different but I quite like it.

It does have GPS but it’s not very good. It’ll regularly be 20% out in distance vs tracking with my phone, for example.

My galaxy watch got really bad during the end of its life. Couldn't rely on any of its data and battery only lasted 2 days max. My charge6 is less than a year old, so I'm planning on letting this one ride for a couple to a few years and see how the chips fall

Agreed. I tried a pixel watch, Fitbit charge 6 and whoop 4 and all gave erroneous HR on the wrist. My polar pacer pro is far better.

I’ve been a loyal Fitbit user since 2018, and unfortunately, I’m writing this review out of frustration and disappointment. This is my third Fitbit watch. The original one worked fine, which encouraged me to upgrade. However, that was the last time I was truly satisfied with a Fitbit product. Despite Fitbit’s marketing claims that their watches are waterproof, that has not been my experience. My second device, the Charge 5, stopped working after I spent a short time in a kiddie pool. It was barely submerged, and I took all the precautions, yet it still failed. I gave the brand another chance and purchased the latest Charge model only for it to stop functioning after I ran through the sprinklers with my kids once. When I reached out to customer service, all they could offer was a discount toward another replacement. No refund, no proper resolution,just the opportunity to buy yet another device that may not last. This is unacceptable, especially for a company that promotes its product

I had the sense 2 for a few years until it died last month. I picked up the charge 6 at a good price, $120 and I actually love it. I was concerned about the size and look of the screen but it's not an issue and gives me everything I had with my sense 2 except the microphone which I hardly ever used. Highly recommend if you are going to stick with the Fitbit brand. I do have a pixel phone.

I love It and you can find a lot of nice bands on temu

I've had one for a month. It's worth it as long as gps accuracy isn't a deal breaker for you. Sleep tracking and heart rate monitoring seem consistent enough to extrapolate enough good data from.

It depends on what you're looking for, imo. I've had a charge 6 for about a year, it's still going strong, and I'm happy with it... but that being said, it's more of a fitness tracker than a smart watch--battery life is about a week per charge, and is useful for tracking metrics like heart rate, steps, and sleep. There's some notifications for calls, texts, and emails if you set it up, but you can also choose to leave it be. It's also surprisingly durable--I frequently work with heavy machinery, so the outer casing of my fitbit has some dings on it, but the screen is just fine. Overall, I don't actually have any grievances minus the lack of customization for the UI, so I'd probably buy it again

YMMV. Been using charge 6 over a year and battery life has suddenly been horrendous. Needs a charge every second day. Been using Fitbit for maybe 10 years plus, battery life has never been this bad before. Not quite sure if I want to try going through the warranty interrogation or just get something else.

Can I ask what you like so much about the 6? I have one and I like it but I haven't used many trackers before so I dont have much of a frame of reference

Why no one is talking about FIT bit charge 6/5 , it's having pretty much all the same functions as if whoop , was on fitbit 5 for a while only issue I faced was if the strat it gave be skin burns

I recently got a Garmin Vivosmart 5 to replace my Fitbit Charge I had for many years. Can’t believe I just made the switch, personally, the Garmin blows the Fitbit out of the water!

Garmin swim 2. Gives you pretty accurate yards that you can see while swimming. My Fitbit charge wouldn’t show distance until I stopped and synchronized with my phone after. Also, wet touchscreen on the Fitbit is useless.

Ya, I went through 2 fitbit charges before giving up and buying a pixel watch.

I like my Inspire a lot. I had issues with the last Charge I had but the Inspire has been great (I’m over the two year mark! My charges didn’t last much more than 2 years). The battery life is much better too. I’ve read articles that Fitbit app is being replaced on all android phones. To me this could imply a major refresh. If true - I’d say it’s a perfect time to get in!

I use a Fitbit charge but I take it off during rolling. There is someone at my class that uses a whoop with a bicep strap and he likes it. I asked if it ever slips or causes any problem and he said no. He's been using for training for 2 years now.

My wife and I had six different charge devices over the years. They all die just after the warranty! I really like the product but they don't last. Incidentally, the last one I bought I got the two year warranty. The product died after the first year and was replaced and then the replacement died 3 months after the warranty. Unless you want to buy one every year or so... don't but the fitbit Charge.

I don't believe you're going to find anything that fits those requirements. Heart rate monitoring while swimming is very difficult and only the most expensive garmins would I trust that it's being accurate. My recommendation would be a Fitbit Charge, I think that's going to be the best bet, it meets all of your other requirements and will track heart rate outside of the pool.

This. I was a long time Fitbit user with several Charges and a Versa. Switched to Garmin after Fitbit started to go downhill. My Garmin vivoactive 5 has been a great experience and I haven't looked back.

Honestly for the price point I would not get a fit bit. I had a charge and versa 2 or 3. The product wasn't great. The features struggled to work outside the basic health tracking and after a 2.5 years it was getting finicky about charging. I got a Samsung galaxy 6 instead. It was about the same price as a versa. All the advertised features work consistently without a fight. It is a much better product. Like you said they're phasing out the fit bit so if I were you I would go with the same brand watch as your phone for ease of use or something like a Garmin.

I’ve been using Fitbit for years. I’m currently on my second Versa Lite (had to buy a 2nd on eBay). I upgraded a few years ago to a Charge something, but the music controls didn’t work, so I returned and turned back to the Lite. It’s starting to require more frequent charging, which is a bummer. I’m starting to consider other options, but everything seems to have such a short battery life!

I had a Charge before actually (before the screen died and Google said tough luck). It was good for daily HR but I found every kind of activity tracking was really poor unless you had GPS on, and then it chewed through the battery like crazy.

I have used a Fitbit Charge as my smartwatch for years. I think I'm on my third one and I only need to charge it about once a week. And with this latest one I got, it now has navigation and texting, two things I was missing in the past. It's smaller than even the 41mm Pixel and has everything I need. I'm with you ... just can't give up the battery life for a pixel watch.

Why not just stick with the Fitbit Charge? My Fitbit also measured the little things. But it also picked up on too much. Garmin prefers to count little steps as "accidents" such as typing on a keyboard. If you are using it to win a challenge, then Fitbit might be better for you. But if you want it for running or workout suggestions, then Garmin is better.

Yes I left Fitbit when they got rid of Fitbit Bingo :(

Before I got more seriously into running, I really liked my Fitbit Charge. The best thing about it is that it would detect my activities automatically. So it knew if I went for a walk, went for a run, went for a bike ride, without having to tell it that's what I was doing. It counted my steps and tracked my heart rate 24/7, and it would tell me how many minutes I spent in each heart rate zone every day/week. With Coros, it doesn't track much at all unless you tell it you're about to do a workout. So I think Coros watches are best for analyzing workouts and training for events like races, FitBit is better as a general fitness tracker.

I've been using one for the better part of 2 months now. Same use situation kinda. I use it for time, timers, and sleep tracking. I had a fitbit charge before it that was great until it died. I wasn't going to drop another $100-140 for a watch to last a little over a year again. The watch pro 2 is awesome if you are willing to accept it's compromises. On the latest firmware, it duplicates notifications for me. It can and will disconnect from your phone if you go out of range or close the companion app. It likes for you to leave that in the background and have the connection notification in your notification shade (on Android at least, I am unsure of iPhone behavior). Neither of those are that big of a deal to me. What annoys me is when you set timers; you cannot leave the timer screen. The crown can accidentally stop the timer if it catches on clothes while you're moving around. I wear long sleeve rash guards at work and when it's raining; the wet rash guard sleeves will interact with the touchscreen and stop my timers, because again you can't leave the timer screen. I've already given feedback about how I'd love to have them modify the timer software's behavior. You *should* be able to send it to the background and go to the home screen. But as of right now it isn't designed that way. I've found a few screens where it remains on 24 hr time despite me setting it for 12 hr. Basically, it's got issues that can be patched with updates. I charge it once a week (a full 7 days). The battery life is AMAZING. I've only found one review that accurately describes the watch pro 2. It's a middle ground between fitness tracker and smartwatch. My Fitbit did not let me customize anything besides a watchface; it didn't do phone calls. It did last as long between charges. With the watch pro 2 you can have 4 "widget" screens in addition to the watchface. They have 4 spots per screen and they have widgets for each corner or a larger widget that takes two spaces (top or bottom). It has a "app menu" for anything you can't find a widget for. I don't regret buying mine. For the price point it's phenomenal.

You have to remember that Fitbits are manufactured and sold by the hundreds of thousands. It's inevitable that some small number of people are going to have a problem with theirs. It's no different for any other consumer electronics product. You always play the odds when you buy any tech, but odds are that yours will work as advertised. The Fitbit brand has taken a lot of heat since Google bought it. But considering the competition, I'm not surprised that Tom continues to rate it high. I've been very happy with the three Charge models I've bought since 2016.

I had 3 Charge’s that all died in less than 18 months. This last time, instead of buying a new Charge 6, I bought a Garmin VivoActive 5. The size takes a bit of getting used to, but I’m happy to have broken up with FitBit for good.