Fitbit Inspire 3 Review: A Tiny Fitness Tracker With Big Battery Life | Raider Tech

 

The $100 (£85, AU$180) Fitbit Encourage 3 is a superb entry-level health tracker supreme for Fitbit newcomers, in addition to an vital improve for anybody upgrading from a earlier Fitbit. It has a coloration AMOLED display screen, a brand new menu system, and the identical long-lasting battery. The Encourage 3 is suitable with Android and iOS to obtain notifications or name alerts out of your telephone, plus it tracks sleep in the identical means as dearer Fitbit trackers and smartwatches. So it is simple to suggest the Encourage 3 if you’d like the most effective battery lifetime of any Fitbit (10 days) with out the bells and whistles of our present favourite, the $150 Charge 5.

The Encourage 3 comes with a free six-month trial of Fitbit Premium, the $10-per-month subscription service that unlocks extra knowledge on sleep and restoration. The earlier Encourage 2 mannequin got here with a one-year trial. Whereas not required to make use of the Encourage 3, Premium is rapidly turning into a vital a part of the Fitbit expertise, now owned by Google, and is unquestionably one thing to think about when trying on the complete price over the lifetime of the system.

Additionally, a number of cheaper health trackers have been sizzling on Fitbit’s heels for the previous couple of years, so there’s extra competitors than ever. Notably, the $60 Xiaomi Mi Band 7 has a good greater display screen than the Encourage 3 and gives comparable well being options, even when it falls behind in sensor accuracy. Garmin additionally has the Vivosmart 5 with much more health monitoring choices, nevertheless it’s dearer at $150 and solely has a monochrome display screen.

The brand new coloration display screen makes the distinction

Earlier Encourage fashions needed to make do with a monochrome show, however the Encourage 3 will get a lift with a coloration AMOLED display screen. That is actually a very powerful cause to improve if you happen to’re coming from an older mannequin, because it makes all of the distinction in consumer expertise with out sacrificing battery life. The case measures 1.55 inches, however the display screen itself would not take up all the system’s usable area. Relying on the sunshine, you might be able to see the sides of the display screen and the bezels.

You might be curious how the Encourage 3 compares to the $130 Fitbit deluxe, launched in 2021. Selecting between the 2, worth apart, the Fitbit Luxe is a bit slimmer and its display screen is a bit bigger, however the distinction is barely noticeable except you examine them aspect by aspect. So except you actually worth the sleeker look of the Luxe and need a extra jewelry-like end with bands and equipment, the Encourage 3 is a a lot better worth total.

The display screen can all the time keep on, so the watch face stays seen always, though that eats into total battery life, taking it down from 10 days to three days. The watch faces are giant sufficient so that you can see, however I feel if you happen to want studying glasses, seeing your exercise metrics on the display screen could be a problem because the textual content is kind of small.

Navigating the Encourage 3 is a bit completely different than earlier fashions. There are actually two haptic buttons on both aspect that you could pinch to activate the display screen or to return to the watch face from any menu. Swipe left and proper to entry train monitoring, respiration workouts, timers and alarms or notifications out of your telephone. Swipe up and all the way down to entry settings and your every day well being abstract, respectively.

A brand new $20 clip accent permits you to put on the Encourage 3 elsewhere in your physique to trace a exercise when you possibly can’t put on it in your wrist, like for boxing. However the Encourage 3 would not have the identical quick-release buttons because the Cost 5, making it simple to vary bands; as a substitute, they’re switches which can be fairly difficult to regulate. The Encourage 3 is water-proof to 50 meters (164 toes).

Fixed sleep and well being monitoring from Fitbit for a lower cost

For Fitbit newcomers, the Encourage 3 can monitor steps, coronary heart charge, and blood oxygen ranges all through the day and night time. Exercises and sleep may also be tracked robotically or manually. The Encourage 3 makes use of a metric known as Energetic Zone Minutes that will help you attain beneficial exercise ranges and takes into consideration how a lot time your coronary heart charge spends in sure zones, personalised to your age and health stage. I actually like the way it passively tracks all of this within the background, even when I overlook to begin a selected exercise. Merely going up and down the steps a number of occasions a day will help contribute to your Energetic Zone Minutes objectives.

The Encourage 3 has a linked GPS as a substitute of a GPS constructed into the system. This implies you will must take your telephone with you to trace out of doors route data and distances for issues like walks and runs. You possibly can monitor over 20 completely different exercise varieties with room to retailer six exercise profiles on the system itself. To alternate your favourites, you need to load the Fitbit app after which re-synchronize with the band.

The health monitoring expertise is fairly easy, although you possibly can see your coronary heart charge, elapsed time, tempo, calorie burn, steps, and your lively zone minute objective by swiping throughout every display screen for a minute. coaching. When you’re accomplished, it exhibits a fast abstract of your metrics, and while you sync with the Fitbit app, you get the total abstract in your telephone, together with route data and a map if it is an out of doors exercise.

This tracker additionally has excessive and low coronary heart charge alerts, plus irregular coronary heart rhythm detection throughout sleep, which may notify you if it registers indicators of atrial fibrillation.

Fitbit’s sleep monitoring is complete, and even on this small system you continue to get full immersion into sleep levels. It is all simple to learn within the Fitbit app while you sync every morning, and you probably have Premium, you will see traits over time, in addition to metrics like in a single day pores and skin temperature. After 14 days of utilizing the system, you will get an in depth sleep profile and each month you will obtain an up to date sleep animal that represents your sleep type. I’m a turtle, if you’re enjoying at house.

All of your coaching and sleep knowledge is introduced collectively within the every day health rating, additionally a function of Fitbit Premium. This helps point out whether or not your physique is prepared for extra exercise that day, or whether or not you need to take it simple and concentrate on one thing a little bit extra enjoyable, like respiration workouts or yoga. I am a giant fan of the rating and love the personalised coaching suggestions it gives. There’s additionally a stress administration rating that may point out how your physique is coping with stress, calculated from metrics like coronary heart charge, sleep, and exercise ranges. The next rating means you are coping higher, however I do not discover it as helpful because the every day readiness rating on the whole.

Solely primary good options

The Encourage 3 is fairly primary in relation to good options. You possibly can see the notifications that come out of your telephone, with the choice to filter them by app kind from the Fitbit app. There is a timer and alarm app constructed into the tracker, plus a discover my telephone function to ping everytime you’re in Bluetooth vary. It additionally helps Google Quick Pair so it connects rapidly to Android telephones.

However that is it. There isn’t any Fitbit Pay for contactless funds out of your wrist, music playback management, or on-board music storage. Actually, you get this tracker for its passive well being and health monitoring, not as a smartwatch different.

One of the best battery lifetime of any Fitbit

The Fitbit Encourage 3’s 10-day battery life is actually spectacular and contains sleep monitoring, some primary exercise monitoring, and principally 24/7 use of the system throughout my assessments. Battery life matches that of the Encourage 2, even with the brand new tracker’s extra vibrant coloration display screen.

Whereas battery life can fluctuate primarily based in your utilization, and considerably if you happen to use the always-on show mode which drops battery life to 3 days, I used to be nonetheless very impressed with not having to cost the tracker anyplace as shut as typically like different Fitbit fashions I’ve reviewed.

The Encourage 3 is a set-and-forget tracker

Fitbit nails the components for a primary health tracker with the Encourage 3, particularly if you’d like one thing that passively tracks within the background with solely an occasional recharge. However its most helpful options require Fitbit Premium, which is a further month-to-month price after the free trial ends.

The Encourage 3 ought to meet the wants of somebody in search of Fitbit’s barely dearer $130 Luxe tracker, and even beats it with longer battery life. However if you’d like Fitbit Pay and much more health monitoring options with out spending extra on a Fitbit Versa smartwatch, the $150 Fitbit Cost 5 is the most effective purchase total.