Fitness Trackers
One subcategory of the Internet of Things are fitness trackers, primarily worn on the wrist. I’ve tried Fitbit Force and Basis. In this post I share my thoughts on these trackers.
Heart Rate Tracking
There are two categories of wrist trackers: 1) those that are just pedometers and sleep trackers, and 2) those that add heart rate monitoring. Basis is one of the first to do a reasonable job tracking heart rate. Fitbit Force is one of the best pedometer only solutions.
Basis’ heart rate tracking is great for normal activity ranging from 50 bpm to 120 bpm. But it is not good at exercise heart rate monitoring. For instance, when I go on a jog my heart rate climbs to 160 bpm. Basis doesn’t track that well and shows 120 bpm when it should be 160 bpm. Basis also has a larger design in order to physically have room for the metallic probes on the underside of the watch, which is not as light as the Fitbit Force.
Sleep Tracking
There are two kinds of sleep tracking: 1) those that require you to push a button (e.g. Fitbit Force), and 2) those that auto-detect your sleep (e.g. Basis). Basis’ automatic sleep tracking is great. With Fitbit Force, I would often forget to push the button when I awoke.
Step Counting
All of these fitness trackers count steps. The default target is 10,000 steps per day. I noticed a considerable difference in the algorithms that these two trackers use to count steps, so I decide to wear both devices for a day side-by-side on the same arm. The Fitbit Force recorded 50% more steps than the Basis for the same exact period of time. It is clear that these algorithms are not accurate measures of actual steps. Rather, they are a proxy for movement and are only useful to measure the relative movement of one day versus another day.
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Other interesting devices include the Samsung Note 3 which is a smart watch pedometer. It does not do heart rate.
There are also a number of new fitness trackers getting baked via Kickstarter, that all remain to be proven.
I’m just beginning to play with these devices. I’m not sure exactly how I’ll use the information to improve myself. But for now, it is motivation enough to just see the data and use the device as a constant reminder to be more active each day.
Have you tried fitness trackers? What are your favorite devices? How do you use the information?
Related articles
- Fitbit Force: Fitness Tracker
- Consumer Electronics Association Highlights Results of Wearable Fitness Devices Study
- Fitbit Force fitness tracking band incoming
- An Overview Of Fitness Trackers
- New Heart Rate Trackers: Is Knowing Your Pulse Useful?
- Finally! A fitness tracker that actually knows what you’re doing
- The future of fitness-tracking gadgets
From the conversation
Comments preserved from the original post.
James W Hill
Hi John,
Interesting post. I have had a Nike+ Fuelband for about 18 months. I recently also picked up a Fitbit Force, partly because they have an api so you can export your data (I don’t know what I would do with it so far, but I like that feature). So I have been wearing both on my non-dominant left wrist for the last three weeks to see what the difference is. I recently compiled the steps data to see what the difference was. The Nike Fuelband registers about 30% less steps than the Fitbit Force, on average. Definitely different algorithms and/or sensors.
Honestly, I had not even been looking at the steps data when using my Fuelband. I was only concerned with the Nike Fuel points and my relative activity from day to day. Was I having an active day or an inactive day? I set my goal to a point where I had to be pretty active to hit it, but if I exercised I was definitely going to hit it. I was surprised at how effective it has been. I am definitely disappointed if I don’t reach my goal (I’ve even been guilty of some late night arm waving from time to time to put me over the edge). I view steps the same way, its just a number, and just as arbitrary as any other. The point for me is, was I active today or not? I’m planning on transitioning to the Fitbit Force only starting in January.
I’ve attached a graph of the steps data over the last 3 weeks. Also, you can check out the raw data in this google spreadsheet. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Al20Ccmjvo0edEc2eEd3Y1J0TmxWTndJMXJzUFhNLUE&usp=sharing
melonakos
In reply to an earlier comment
Hey, wonderful and useful comment James. Thanks for posting. I share your summary of usage benefit that it’s nice to have that reminder even if the absolute numbers are not that meaningful. I like that Basis has nice goal setting features as well and the automatic sleep tracking and activity-type tracking (differentiating between running, walking, and biking) is nice.
Looks like you had a lazy Christmas Eve :p