Fitbit Charge 5 review: an almost complete bracelet
“The Fitbit Charge 5 has it all: heart rate sensor, long battery life, GPS, new sensors to better understand your body and your sleep, but it lacks something: the ability to make and receive calls.”
Pros
Compact size
Brighter display
Long duration battery
Quick pairingCons
Lacks microphone or speakers
It has no music controls
Features on an iPhone are limitedThe Fitbit Charge 5 is the latest bracelet from Fitbit, a wearable technology company now owned by Google. Its operating system and features remain true to their essence, although the design evolved to be more refined.
As a Fitbit user, I confirmed that the innovation of the Fitbit Charge 5 compared to its predecessors is great. This bracelet has a more modern design, a better screen, and an extra detail that you may like … or not.
This is the first bracelet of the company to incorporate the possibility of taking an electrocardiogram, similar to what we found in the latest smartwatch from the company Fitbit Sense; however, at the time of my test, the option was not yet available.
Design and comfort
One of the great advances between the previous generation and this year’s bracelet is that the device feels much slimmer and more elegant, especially since it incorporates more rounded corners, seen in the Versa 3.
Thanks to this evolution, in my tests, I realized that this bracelet is ultimately easier to wear on a day-to-day basis and comfortable to wear at night. We must add that this device is made of aluminum and glass and incorporates a silicone band.
If you are a fan of Fitbit wristbands, you may have noticed that in the past, the Charges weren’t the best when it came to outdoor screen visibility. However, with the Fitbit Charge 5, you will get more brightness on the screen, which, by the way, is protected with Corning Gorilla Glass.
You will also like that the screen is in color, so it beats some of its predecessors in this regard.
The 1.04-inch panel was easy to use despite its small size, although larger than the Fitbit Luxe. Of course, at first, I did not like not having any physical or haptic button as in the past, but I guess I ended up getting used to it.
Battery, eternal battery
If something is important in bracelets and smartwatches, it is the battery, and by using the Fitbit Charge 5 all day and all night, with at least an hour of exercise or daily walks, I managed to make the battery last about six days. Of course, it did not have the screen on mode active because that would have ruined this idea of the “eternal battery” that has always surrounded Fitbit devices.
You can activate the always-on screen mode in a menu almost hidden in the clock settings, where it is possible to decide the brightness and set a time for this function to deactivate (usually from 10:00 pm to 6:00 am ).
With the always-on display, the bracelet shows the time with less brightness all the time, but when you turn your wrist to see it, it lights up in full color. Otherwise, it is always off and only turns on when you turn your wrist.
The Fitbit Charge 5’s battery is good if you don’t activate the always-on screen, although doing so is still great, but not eternal.
Performance and usability
The absence of a physical button was something that I did not love because it is annoying to have to back the screen several times until you get to the home panel. However, you end up getting used to it.
The Fitbit Charge 5 is a sports bracelet. Therefore, you will be interested to know that it has a heart rate sensor with the electrocardiogram function about to be released. In addition, you can have up to six different exercises on your wrist from a list of 20 that you can modify in the Fitbit app.
I liked that the bracelet automatically and accurately captures some workouts like running or hiking. We all forget to turn on our wearables to count our calories, so this function is a success.
On the other hand, when I used the GPS mode with the bracelet, it took some time to take note of the data, although it did it correctly. Of course, if you go for a run with your cell phone, it is most likely that Fitbit wants to take the GPS data from your phone to save battery, although if you leave it at home, it will have no choice but to use its own.
If you are an Android phone user, you will like to know that Fitbit now has “quick pairing”: as soon as you turn on the bracelet and your phone, if it is nearby, it automatically guides you through the synchronization process, which includes your contacts.
However, the Fitbit Charge is not able to make or receive calls because it does not have a microphone, so you will only receive notifications, which will be very useful to check emails and text messages that you can answer with “automatic responses” if you have an Android phone, but not if you have an iPhone.
By the way, this is the first Fitbit device with a water blocking mode, which you can activate when you dive with it since it has resistance to this liquid, and you can even activate the swim mode to capture your information with each stroke.
Health functions
In addition to routine functions, this bracelet includes 24/7 heart rate tracking, sleep monitoring, and the activity zone feature, a Fitbit measurement to help you understand your workout.
In addition, the Fitbit Charge 5 is the first of its kind to add a blood oxygen monitor and (SPO2) and an electromagnetic activity (EDA) monitor that helps with stress analysis.
To make matters worse, Fitbit will soon launch a new feature called Readiness Score for Fitbit Premium users, which analyzes all the values to tell you if your body is ready for training or if you should take a little more time to rest.
If you do not like very large smartwatches or devices that add the function of receiving calls, the Fitbit Charge 5 can be a complete option that includes good health features to keep you in shape.
The Fitbit Charge 5 is priced at about $ 180 and will hit stores at the end of September. It comes in three different colors: Graphite Black / Stainless Steel, Ivory White / Gold Stainless Steel, and Steel Blue / Platinum Stainless Steel.
