Disclaimer: I am either the worst or best person to review this product.
I was excited to order the Fitbit One, a wearable device that tracks your calories, steps, stairs, and sleep. You attach the device to your clothing and it syncs with the mobile app or on the computer to give you a visual display of your data. After announcing my purchase on Twitter, I got a tweet back from someone warning me that the Fitbit is easy to lose–he had 2 break on him and lost one. Thanks a ton, Mr. Buzzkill! After receiving the product, I was initially struck that there was not an instruction manual included—just a link to the website for setting up the device so it syncs to a phone or computer. I did end up finding the full instructions on the website. Here is my 48 hour experience with the Fitbit One.
Day 1: I followed the instructions to track my sleep that evening. When I got to work I noticed that the device gave me credit for steps when I rode in the car. Upon arriving at my computer, I was eager to sync the device so that I could see my sleep data. Upon syncing, for some reason, the device reset all my data to zero. Zero steps, zero stairs, and sleep data gone! Bummer! I figured maybe something went wrong so just decided to start over and see if day 2 would go better.
Day 2: First thing in the morning I hooked the device to my jeans as illustrated on the Fitbit website (figure below), eager to finally see an entire day’s worth of activity. At 11am I checked to see how I was doing and noticed the device was gone! It was no longer on my jeans! I retraced my steps of the day, called both stores I was in, and it was nowhere to be found. For sympathy, I tweeted the guy who warned me it gets lost easily and he simply said, “I wish I was wrong.”
I went online to see if the guy from Twitter and I were the only absent-minded folks losing their devices. Not so. I read stories of women lodging it between their breasts in their bras to keep it secure (applause for the effort, but I think I may lack space in my “overhead bin,” if you know what I mean), people buying leashes to keep it from falling off of clothes, and others toilet diving after their Fitbit during a restroom visit (also a big pass for me!). I assume my Fitbit One is likely floating away gently down the sewer stream or in the hands of someone who decided to pick it up and make it their own (not for long, sucker!).
Bottomline: For the price, usability needs to improve. It’s one thing to have a $10 pedometer fly off your jeans, but a $100 device should be more reliable when worn as instructed. I have no idea how well the product works given I owned it for 48 hours, but unless you plan to babysit it on a regular basis or come up with a very secure way to fashion it into your clothing (and then not forget it’s there so it doesn’t end up in the spin cycle) I might pass on this until the price comes way down, making the loss feel like… less of a loss.
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I think it’s unfair to put a “thumbs down” on a product you didn’t use. I own a Fitbit and am looking forward to receiving my Fitbit One, a dramatic upgrade so I can bluetooth data to my phone, and I’ll be tying it in with MyFitnessPal. After years of yo-yo exercising, this is the one tool that has kept me, and countless others, on track. Plus, the Fitbit online community has been helpful and friendly (unlike many weight loss forums).
Of course you are going to get data back from driving – if you hit a bump, it’s going to think you are stepping. You are able to put in your log that you were driving during that time. I do 2x a day.
I’m sorry you had a bad experience, but I hope you’d give the tool an actual shot. A warning that you feel it doesn’t attach properly is one thing. Giving it a thumbs down when you haven’t seen its performance is unfair.
Glad you had a great experience! I just don’t want to risk another $100 and have the same thing happening, so I will not be purchasing another. For me, that was a lot of money for something that lasted 2 days. It would be equivalent to buying a part for your car that flies off when you drive unless you really work hard or talk to a bunch of people to learn their tricks to figure out a way to prevent that from happening. Thanks for your comment, great for people to hear the range of experiences people have.
Sherry
Some people, when a Fitbit has been lost, have changed their personal greeting to their telephone number, so if someone finds it they can call. A couple of people on the forums have mentioned that they recovered their Fitbit that way.
That’s a great idea. I think a strong metal clip that hangs on tight would help too.
I can’t say anything about the Fitbit One, but I can tell you that I’ve really enjoyed my Fitbit Zip. It’s small, simple and has a clip of iron (I can’t imagine it popping off). I’ve been the victim of gadget giddiness in the past, buying things that claimed to give me all sorts of info, only to be disappointed in the end. I chose the Zip over the more loaded One, in part, because of this. It’s a simple step-counter for me. That’s good enough. I’m not sure how accurate it is and the synching with My Fitness Pal is wonky at times, but it pushes me to get up and get walking and get steps in each day. That’s good for moi!
Thanks Sally! I got the Fitbit One because I was really interested in the sleep monitoring most of all. I might check into some other devices that serve that purpose now that I’m back to the drawing board. I have heard from others though that the Zip is great.
Sherry
I don’t think I could sleep, knowing something was monitoring my sleep. I have, however, gone to bed with my Zip attached to my PJs and can report that I don’t sleepwalk.
Wow. After reading this, I’m happier than ever that my family decided to give me a Nike FuelBand instead of a Fitbit for Christmas. Not ready to issue a verdict on it yet, but it is at least still wrapped around my wrist!
Thanks Duffy! Would LOVE TO hear how it goes! I’m back to the drawing board, as you can see.
Sherry
Sherry, for sleep, check out the Sleep Cycle app for the iPhone. Not sure if it tracks all the data you want, but the newest version does let you export your full history (time to bed, time woke up, “sleep quality”, time in bed, sleep notes) to CSV. And it’s WAY cheaper than $100. What I really like is that it monitors my sleep and wakes me up at times in my sleep cycle that are least painful. I’ve been using it since June, and I’ve had maybe two “no-way-in-hell-can-I-get-up-with-the-alarm-right-now” sort of mornings.
Thanks Molly! I will definitely grab that today! That is exactly what I want!
Sherry,
If all you are interested in is sleep then I would recommend either the Jawpone Up of Larklife. Both do an really good job at tracking sleep and activity. Best part: the devices are in bracelet form so you know if they are still on your body.
Thanks! I was thinking about the Jawbone, I like the bracelet idea better than a clip-on. I really don’t want to think about the device at all while it’s on (i.e., keep checking if it’s still there) or have it get thrown in the laundry accidentally. With a bracelet that seems unlikely to happen and I’ll remember to take it off and on. I will just have to see if it is bothersome to have it on the wrist all the time. Might be worth a try!
Sherry
I love all these reviews for the fit bit thank you everyone for taking the time to do so. I have been wanting one and not sure if it was worth the money and now I think I may take a chance and see how it works out for me. I love the apps on my phone but sometimes I just don’t want to take it with me.This will be a nice change!
I love my FitBit One. The guilt that you feel when you have a low scoring day is terrible! Syncing it with My Fitness Pal App is great too because you can easily track your food and exercise with it. And if you do good, it lets you know by upping your allowed calories for the day. Yea!
I found the slip for the jeans to be very effective and you can always just put it in your jean pocket, too! The wrist accessory is great for sleeping. And if you mess up and roll over and reset your sleep timer you can adjust your sleep times on the website and it will track your sleep the same way it would if you hadn’t messed up the tracker.
I have been a dedicated Fitbit user for the past year, and recently upgraded to a Fitbit One. First of all, I want to say that their customer service is amazing. When I had the previous version of the Fitbit, if it ever cracked or started acting wonky, they sent me a free replacement. Most products would just make you buy a new one, but they were very responsive and helpful. I did have to take pictures of it and send it to them, but they did send me a new one.
I started using the Fitbit when I was having sleeping problems so that I could see how restless I was at night. I never used the calorie/meal tracker, but do use it as a pedometer. I clip mine onto my bra (not into the middle where the diagram on the website shows you to), but on the inside of the cup – so it is essentially inside my bra and my breast rests on top of it. It doesn’t bother me there, and I’ve never had any noticeable problems with it tracking or not tracking steps. I am obsessed with the pedometer feature and have been known to pace up and down the hallway of my condo at night, so I can hit a certain number. Am I only at 9,542 for the day? You better believe I will find a way to get those extra 500 steps in before I get into bed! I love my Fitbit and can’t imagine not having one haha