Fitbit Reading Pulse When Im Not Wearing It
Our Verdict
With integrated GPS and some design tweaks, the Fitbit Versa 3 is an first-class wearable. Like its predecessor, though, information technology's more a fitness tracker than a smartwatch, with very limited productivity apps on offer. What you practice go is slap-up battery life, a better brandish than before, and a plethora of fitness statistics, making this a very compelling and affordable Apple Watch alternative. Withal, given this is the third iteration of the popular Versa line, information technology's a picayune disappointing that Fitbit is still non quite hitting the mark in some areas.
For
- Beautiful display
- Built-in GPS
- Lightweight and comfortable
Against
- Poorly designed side button
- Requires Fitbit Premium subscription to unlock advanced features
- No offline Spotify back up
TechRadar Verdict
With integrated GPS and some design tweaks, the Fitbit Versa three is an excellent wearable. Like its predecessor, though, it'due south more a fettle tracker than a smartwatch, with very limited productivity apps on offering. What y'all practise get is corking battery life, a better display than before, and a plethora of fitness statistics, making this a very compelling and affordable Apple Spotter alternative. Still, given this is the third iteration of the popular Versa line, information technology's a little disappointing that Fitbit is nonetheless not quite hitting the mark in some areas.
Pros
- +
Beautiful brandish
- +
Born GPS
- +
Lightweight and comfortable
Cons
- -
Poorly designed side button
- -
Requires Fitbit Premium subscription to unlock avant-garde features
- -
No offline Spotify support
Ii-minute review
Update: In June 2021, Fitbit released a new firmware update for the Fitbit Versa and Fitbit Sense that added new features including aural Google Assistant notifications, new celebration animations and, for some Fitbit Premium users, a tool that detects snoring and ambient dissonance at night. Original review follows.
The Fitbit Versa 3 finally fixes our biggest gripe about the Versa line of smartwatches. The Versa 3 now comes with integrated GPS to track – in real time – the pace and distance of your walks, runs, bike rides or hikes if you cull to exit your phone behind, which has earned it the elevation spot in our roundup of the best Fitbits.
While that's definitely a stride up from the Versa 2, as is the larger and truly gorgeous display, there are still little things about the Versa 3 that brand it oh-and so-frustratingly-shut to being one of the best wearables on the market.
Don't go us incorrect – the Versa three is a serious contender to be the best fitness wearable on the market, especially given its relatively affordable price tag and the plethora of fitness tracking capabilities information technology has, which too includes an SpO2 sensor to measure out blood oxygen levels while you lot sleep. However, a lot more useful data is locked behind the Fitbit Premium paywall, and the redesign of the side button has made it frustrating to apply.
Instead of a physical button, like there is on the Versa ii, at that place'due south now an indent on the left side of the chassis that's similar to the inductive push button that debuted on the Fitbit Charge 3. Unfortunately, it'due south not too implemented on the Versa three, and it takes a few tries to find the exact spot you lot need to press to bring upward apps and sub-menus.
Other than that, though, the Versa three is a cute wearable that does a lot of what the Fitbit Sense can practise, with the exception of stress management and avant-garde heart monitoring. That ways it's cheaper than the Sense, although it is slightly more than expensive than the Versa two in some markets (information technology costs the same £199 in the United kingdom as its predecessor). Nevertheless, born GPS, a larger 1.58-inch AMOLED display (the aforementioned every bit the 1 on the Sense) and an SpO2 sensor more than justifies the slightly higher launch price of $229 / AU$399.
There's likewise a lot more than fitness monitoring features on the Versa 3, making the on-device interface a lot busier than what was available on the Versa 2 at launch. There are ways to manage them all, but they exercise take time to become used to.
Despite that, performance is fantabulous, as we've come to expect from Fitbit devices. Battery life is about 6 days on a dim screen setting, but information technology drops to one-half that if you take the brandish ready to e'er-on. GPS isn't as pinpoint accurate as on another bands nosotros've reviewed, only for the average user that won't thing very much. The center rate monitor is now a bit more precise than the Versa 2, only without a breast strap to compare, it's difficult to judge exactly how authentic it is.
Alexa is, of grade, on lath to aid you answer some questions that are displayed on the device, and with Google buying Fitbit, a firmware update some time in the time to come will add Google Assistant to the wearable as well.
In that location's still a famine of productivity apps for Fitbit'south smartwatches merely, as we said in our Versa 2 review, these are commencement and foremost fitness trackers that have a few smartwatch perks.
Fitbit Versa 3 price and availability
- Cheaper than Fitbit Sense
- Pricier than Fitbit Versa two in some markets
- Available in three color options
Fitbit appear the Versa three, forth with the Sense and the Fitbit Inspire 2, at a virtual conference in Baronial 2020. It went upward for pre-order the following twenty-four hour period and began aircraft by late September. The Versa 3 is currently available to buy direct from Fitbit and from major retailers around the world.
Interestingly, in the United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland, both the Versa ii and the Versa 3 are listed for the same price of £199. In the US and Australia, though, the Versa 3 carries a higher toll tag than its predecessor, retailing for $229 and AU$399 respectively. That makes the Versa 3 the heart child – it'due south no longer the flagship, with the Fitbit Sense taking over that role and costing a lot more than at $329 / £299 / AU$499.
Unlike the Versa two, which had a more than expensive Special Edition version available, the Versa iii comes in simply the standard event in three different colors – ii soft gold cases with a Pink Gold and Midnight Blue strap, and a black chassis with a black band.
Design and brandish
- 40mm AMOLED display
- Easy strap removal machinery
- Redesigned side button
At first glance the Versa iii looks identical to its predecessors, but a closer await reveals a few design tweaks that make the new device a bit sleeker. In fact, a change in the color of the aluminum chassis makes the Versa 3 await rather elegant. The 'soft gold' case is neutral, simply a black option keeps the Versa three's universal charm.
The alter in chassis color isn't the biggest design change though; it's the size of the screen. The brandish is now a larger 40mm AMOLED panel every bit compared to the 39mm on the Versa ii, with a higher resolution of 336 x 336 pixels (the Versa 2 is 300 10 300). Information technology'southward a vivid, crisp and very clear display that looks absolutely stunning even at its 'dim' setting at pretty much any viewing angle. The bezels, though, all the same remain quite thick, similar to the Versa 2.
Navigating through the menus and apps via the screen is also a walk in the park – not in one case did the screen lag during our testing period, and swiping to bring up dissimilar functions works remarkably well.
Another design change is the side button, or rather the lack thereof – and it's perhaps our biggest complaint nearly the Versa three. Instead of a concrete button, there's a capacitive indent on the left side of the watch that, when pressed correctly, sends a short vibration to betoken you've activated the smartwatch. Information technology's located beneath the lip of the chassis, so y'all need to experience for it, and finding the exact spot to press is non especially easy. Nosotros've been using the Versa three for over a month now and nosotros nevertheless demand a few tries to discover the exact spot. Thankfully, yous don't e'er need to use this "inductive" button to interact with the watch – you tin gear up the watch to wake with a tap on the screen, and then swipe to bring up whichever menu you demand. That said, there are 'shortcuts' (like bringing up Alexa) that can be set on the watch, and these require either a tap-and-hold or double-tap-and-hold activity to activate them. And they can be frustrating to bring up due to that push button inconsistency.
On the correct border of the sentinel chassis is a tiny mic and a speaker which, in theory, should allow you to have calls.
Fitbit has also inverse the strap mechanism – the same as in the Fitbit Sense – and we think information technology's better than the mechanism on the Versa 2. A minor push button acts as a latch, which when pulled slightly down releases the squeeze. Information technology gives the sentinel a much more than streamlined look and makes it remarkably easy to swap out the default sporty strap it comes with.
This silicone strap is besides different to the one that comes with the standard edition of the Versa 2. Fitbit calls this new model the "Infinity Band", as information technology lacks a buckle – it'due south the aforementioned 1 that ships with the Sense as well.
Some other major deviation betwixt the Versa two and the new iteration is the charger. Instead of the older box-like USB charger, there's a small magnetic dock that tops up the juice extremely quickly – we went from 64% battery to 100% in under 15 minutes.
The Versa 3, like its predecessor, is also h2o resistant to 50m/164ft – pregnant you can wear it in the shower or head out for a swim with it on your wrist. Information technology tin can even survive a dip in salt water, although Fitbit recommends yous non wear it in a hot tub or sauna.
Smartwatch features
- Alexa support, with Google Assistant coming in the hereafter
- Limited productivity apps
- Phone call support
As a smartwatch, the Versa three functions exactly the same as its predecessor. It'due south still a pared-back, no-frills feel every bit compared to something like an Apple tree Watch, but there should yet exist plenty apps to keep many users happy. For example, a Philips Hue app is available to command smart lights, and there's a map app as well. That said, some apps are geo-specific to the US, UK or other regions, so the range of apps available to yous will vary depending on your location. Fitbit Pay, though, should exist a convenient option for most countries, with many banks around the world now supporting the cashless payment method.
It'southward worth reiterating that many of the better Fitbit apps are paid, just as they are on Apple tree Picket or Android Wearable OS devices, and then yous'll need to pony up if you lot want some of the expanded functionality they provide.
Fitbit has a decent range of clock faces to choose from, so it should be easy to find something you like... although strangely, switching to a new face takes a while to apply. Amazon's Alexa is also on board to help with quick questions and, if y'all prepare upward the Alexa app on your telephone and sync your Amazon account, yous can do a lot more, like set reminders and control your smart home devices. With Google set up to buy Fitbit, Google Assistant support is also due to be added, but at that place's no firm timeline on when that is due to occur nevertheless.
Every bit before, at that place's Deezer and Spotify music-streaming support available, but if you're leaving your telephone backside when on a workout, the only way to get admission to your tunes offline is via Deezer. At that place'southward still no offline Spotify feature, which is certainly quite disappointing.
With a built-in mic and speaker, you should, in theory, exist able to take calls, although at the time of writing nosotros were unable to test this functionality. We were able to respond an incoming call, only it seems Fitbit needs to enable this feature and so users tin can apply the device's Bluetooth connection to their phone to speak to a caller (and hear them) by just raising their wrist close to their mouth. Fitbit lists this characteristic as "coming before long" on its website, so we'll update this review when the company rolls out a firmware update to fully enable it.
As before, you'll get all your phone notifications on your wrist, and yous can choose which apps tin can push notifications to the Versa 3 in the Fitbit app. Most commonly used messaging apps are supported, including Slack and WhatsApp, along with emails and Uber.
Android users can reply to text via the Versa 3 with a handful of preset messages, but iPhone users don't have that option. If you're an iOS user and keen on more smartphone functionality from a wear, then yous could consider opting for the Apple Picket SE. Unfortunately, having an onboard mic doesn't mean you're able to dictate letters and send them on any platform.
Fettle and health tracking
- SpO2 monitoring
- GPS enabled
- Several workout options
Like the previous iteration, fitness and health are the areas where the Versa 3 shines. Admittedly, it doesn't take as many health tracking features as the Sense does, merely there's enough here for the boilerplate user to stay on tiptop of things, thanks to 24/vii activeness and middle monitoring.
There are guided breathing exercises bachelor now, with ways to track your mindfulness and the ability to mind to meditation tracks on the Fitbit app. You tin can gear up hourly reminders to move around a lilliputian, set your fitness goals and proceed tabs on your sleep quality. The Versa 3 will also monitor your blood oxygen level while you sleep (provided you clothing the device to bed), and this tin can be of import in detecting disorders like sleep apnea.
Your daily activities are cleaved down into step counts, steps taken, calories burned and zone minutes. You can become a pretty good film on how you're tracking, only if you want to delve deeper, you'll need to be a subscriber to the Fitbit Premium service, which costs $ix.99/£vii.99/AU$xv.49 per month. This gives you access to the new Health Metrics dashboard that offers advanced statistics on breathing rate, oxygen saturation and heart rate variability. While you won't get notifications when your heart rate spikes (like on the Sense), there will be a record of it in case you're monitoring yourself closely. Like the Sense, the Versa three vibrates when you're moving between heart rate zones – useful when y'all're working out and can't keep looking at the clock face to check your pulse.
At that place are several workout options to choose from, including circuit grooming and interval workouts, covering most people'southward needs. Equally mentioned earlier, y'all tin can even article of clothing the Versa 3 during a swim, either in the pool or the bounding main.
And now, cheers to the Versa iii's onboard GPS, all your outdoor activities can be mapped in real time. The GPS isn't ever very precise and does momentarily driblet out, but despite that it's a huge step upward from the Versa two. Continue in mind that the GPS only gets activated when you lot select a workout manner manually. Fitbit'southward SmartTrack characteristic – which automatically detects and records movement that's 15 minutes or longer as exercise – will non activate the GPS. Maps are available on the Fitbit app most immediately later you've ended the practice, with pace, heart charge per unit and calories burnt graphically denoted as well.
Battery life
- Upwardly to 6 days of battery
- 2-day battery with always-on display
- Charges quickly
Battery life is another thing Fitbit does really well, far amend than Apple or Samsung. Similar the Versa 2 before information technology, the Versa 3 offers up to vi days of juice on a total charge, with the brandish prepare at normal brightness and the GPS existence used no more than ii-iii times a week. The more you use the GPS, though, the quicker the battery drains; we measured a roughly 8% drib for thirty minutes of GPS apply.
Keeping the screen always-on, though, drains the battery significantly, giving y'all no more two days on a full charge. And if you utilize the GPS combined with the always-on display, you'll demand to charge the bombardment every day.
When the Versa three'southward battery needs some juice, topping it upwardly is thankfully very quick. As we mentioned earlier, a xv-minute stint on the new USB charger gave us 36% more power.
Should I purchase the Fitbit Versa three?
Purchase it if...
Don't buy it if...
Starting time reviewed Oct 2020
Source: https://www.techradar.com/reviews/fitbit-versa-3
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