Fitbit Charge 2 Special Edition Activity Tracker with Wrist Based Heart Rate Monitor

I bought this watch as a fitness tracker, as I'm a relatively heavy guy trying to workout to lose weight. It's not a bad tracker, but definitely has some flaws.The heart rate monitor seems to be quite accurate, although sometimes it stops reading for seemingly no reason. It's quite good at automatically logging exercise sessions if you forget to start an exercise.The lack of being waterproof is a tad problematic, and because I'm not sure quite how resistant it is, so I take it off if I wash my hands etc, so that's an annoying feature.The default band can get uncomfortable and "sticky" when left on for long periods, and since it has a sleep tracker you'll probably want to be keeping it on overnight.The screen isn't all the bright, and can be difficult to see in bright light, although it does mean if you're going to be looking at it at night, it's easy to look at. On the subject of the screen, it seems to be very easy to scratch. I've had it just a couple of months, and I've already got 3 noticeable scratches in it - in comparison, a watch I had for over 7 years prior to this one, I had 1 scratch in. Now I'll admit, I'm not the most careful, but as far as I can tell, these scratches are just from bumping into a wall or similar, which is easily done.The step count seems to be as accurate as can be for a wrist tracker, which of course means it's not 100% accurate, but that's to be expected. On a 30 minute drive, it'll maybe pick up 100-200 steps, or it may pick up around 50-100 steps when I'm sleeping.The sleep tracker seems quite good, and it's interesting to see the sleep patterns. Impossibly to verify its accuracy, but I have noticed the graph on the app suggests I wake up more on days where I feel more tired on waking.The app is nice and simple, with frequent updates and lots of utility, it makes it easy to alter the look of the watches screen for how you want it customised. My only downside for the app is that it requires an internet connection to sync the watch (which uses Bluetooth) and that text notifications can only be WhatsApp OR texts, not both. This means that if you frequently use both, then you'll only be alerted to one message type.They did update it so you can get notifications even when your phone is on do not disturb, which didn't use to be possible, so they do often update it with new features.It charges quickly, and lasts quite a while (I've foundi only have to charge it every 5-7 days).Overall, I would recommend it if you want a decent fitness tracker, but just beware of the lack of waterproofing, and how easy the screen is to scratch.

I owned a Microsoft Band which really helped me keep my health on track but the wrist band disintegrated after 2 years which meant - end off as it wasn't a replaceable part. After some deliberation, as I'm not that technical, I decided to buy the Fitbit Charge 2. My daughter set it up for me and I couldn't believe the results - my old 'Band' hadn't been recording all my steps or calories and the sleep part was prehistoric in comparison with my new Charge 2. It is also lightweight on my small wrist, the wristbands are interchangeable and it has all the features I need to keep on track for fitness. The wrist band feels very secure as there is a tab that fits into a slot under the keeper so that it doesn't accidentally undo. It took me a bit of time to get around what it does but time and patients are a virtue! I am an OAP with minor health issues. I enjoy walking, cycling and dancing and these are all recorded for me so that I can monitor my goals each day. Dancing I just record as steps as I am the teacher therefor may not always be moving. I have activated the water intake as I have to drink a certain amount each day. I'm very pleased too how I have help to monitor my weight with the choices on offer - maintain or loss weight. All perfect for my needs. If there is a slight minus - I've not got the hang of tapping the screen for updates yet. All in all I'm very pleased with the first weeks results. Delivery was quick though the box was bashed - the contents were well protected.PS - fitting it to it's charging 'cradle' may be tricky to begin with - make sure the button matches up with the slot. I listen for the click to tell me it is in place and when it is there is an icon appears on the screen of the battery charging - this shows there is power there. Simple as that!

I'm a pretty lazy person if I'm being honest and I struggle to stay motivated when it comes to fitness but after buying my sister one of these types of watches for her birthday, a sort of challenge was started...who could take the most steps in a day? As ridiculous as it sounds, I bought this watch and we've been competing for almost two months now (in a fun way, we're not completely mental)You link it to your smart phone and before you know it, you're getting a little vibration every hour telling you to move and "get your steps in" (this is something you can turn off if you'd prefer) It tells you your heart rate, your sleeping patterns, how many flights of stairs you've climbed, how many steps and also let's you track a run, weights session, time on the treadmill etc.I love it! I've now started jogging both outside and on the treadmill and thanks to this watch I know my pace, my heart rate (resting has now dropped from 68 to 56), when I was fat burning and when it was cardio and I also know roughly how many calories I should have burned. It's really helped me keep motivated as it's nice to see proof of the effort I'm putting in.The watch itself is comfortable (like I said, I don't take it off at night because I like to track my sleep) and it doesn't take long to charge up. I think the battery life is around 2-3 days but I just top it up while I'm at my desk at work and not moving ;)I love the lavender colour! But it has been getting dirty pretty easily and I find no matter how much you clean it with soap and water, there's still a kind of grey mark on the edges so I might consider buying a new strap or two for it (it's super easy to change staps) the Rose gold was worth getting if only for the fact that it makes it look a little girlier. I got a large one to be on the safe side as my wrists are 20cm but I've tried on a guys at work and a small would have fit fine too!The only thing I can complain about is that this watch isnt water proof, but I knew this when I bought it, I just wish it was now.