Fitbit Ionic Review: A Smartwatch That's Better at Fitness Than Time -- Barrons.com
DOW JONES & COMPANY, INC. 9:00 AM ET 9/19/2017
Symbol Last Price Change
FIT 6.3908 -0.1692 (-2.58%)
QUOTES AS OF 09:42:51 AM ET 09/19/2017
Fitbit (FIT) became a household name by creating fitness trackers for a wide variety of users, but CEO James Park says that the company's new Ionic watch takes a more targeted approach.
After testing the watch over the last week, I can say he's right. If you're someone who just wants a wrist-worn device to help you stay on top of your day, you're better off looking elsewhere for a cheaper and more versatile alternative. But if you're a health nut in search of a tool that could help promote your fitness goals, it's worth taking a look at the Fitbit Ionic.
One of the best features of the $300 Ionic is that the watch has built-in video workouts. I enjoyed the 10-minute ab workout, which featured some standard ab exercises as well as ones that I hadn't done before. I'm used to getting guided workouts on a phone app, but it turns out a watch is a much better way of tracking the "instructor." The videos are helpful for learning new stretches, and later this year Fitbit(FIT) plans to add dynamic workouts that adjust to a user's feedback and progress. Audio coaching is due out next year, Fitbit(FIT) says. For now, three free workouts come with the watch; the additional features will cost $8 a month, or $40 per year, when they arrive later on.
Starting a run on the Ionic is easy, and the watch easily lets you toggle between metrics like pace, heart rate, and miles traveled while you're in the middle of running. After the run, the watch provides a breakdown of the metrics, similar to the summary you get on a treadmill.
The Ionic can operate without a phone thanks to a built-in GPS, 2.5 GB of storage, and a bluetooth chip for wireless headphones. I synced one of my Pandora stations and was able to listen to music on the go without being connected to my phone. If you don't have one of the paid versions of Pandora, though, syncing music becomes more cumbersome.
Unlike on the Apple Watch, the Ionic's fitness goals are clear and logical. The Fitbit(FIT) watch clearly displays a breakdown of your step count, heart rate, miles travelled, stairs climbed, calories burned, minutes engaged in real exercise, and hours of the day spent mildly active. The straightforward approach makes far more sense than the confusing activity rings Apple uses on its watch.
Beyond the health applications, though, the Ionic can be downright frustrating. You can receive texts on the Ionic, but there's no way to respond to them. Replying to messages on an Apple Watch is awkward, but it's nice to be able to dash off a quick message with pre-set choices or even Apple's finger-scribbling options.
The Ionic's treatment of texts quickly becomes annoying since a phone is still required to do respond to the messages. Luckily, you can disable notifications.
Another issue is that, strangely, Fitbit(FIT) has delivered alarms and timers on the Ionic without any kind of audible option; the alerts are limited to vibrations. That means you can't leave the watch on a nightstand overnight as a backup alarm, which I do with an Apple Watch, on days when I'm most worried about the consequences of oversleeping
Fitbit's (FIT) hope seems to be that you'll rarely take the watch off, which is possible given that the Ionic has a four- day battery life. I tried wearing the Ionic to bed but found it uncomfortable to sleep on my side with something on my wrist. For those less finicky, the vibrating alarm could be a handy tool and it's a good way to wake up without disturbing a partner or roommate.
A four-day battery is also liberating and a major plus for the Ionic versus the daily charging required for an Apple Watch. It also allows the Ionic to track sleep patterns, a feature that Apple seems to have given up on with its watch.
Still, the Ionic's interface is less sophisticated, and it took a lot of time to configure the settings to my liking. The Ionic's menu only shows four apps at a time, and its touch screen seems to require a somewhat more forceful push than the Apple Watch does.
But I'm grateful for the fact that, unless I have the Ionic set up to make payments, I don't need to enter a passcode every time I put the device on my wrist. It's a pain to hit number keys on a tiny screen, and the Apple Watch requires this.
Fitbit (FIT) is banking on the Ionic to get the company back on a path to growth; the company's stock has tumbled 60% in the last 12 months. So far, investors like what they've seen of the Ionic. Fitbit(FIT) shares are up more than 14% since the company previewed the watch in August. The Ionic hits stores in October.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
09-19-170900ET
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
News 
Market Data 
Discover 
