Fitbit Charge 5 review: Why you're MISSING OUT if you're not wearing this smart fitness tracker
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- Опубліковано 18 січ 2022
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Fitbit has become a household name in the tracker/health monitoring field, but the company hasn’t been resting on its laurels. They continue to release newer and more varied offerings, and the Fitbit Charge 5 is no exception. Fitbit claims the Charge 5 is their most advanced fitness & health tracker to date. Let’s find out more about it.
If you’re looking at Fitbits you likely already know the basics they can do; count steps and track activity, monitor sleep, check heart rate and more. In the Charge, you’re getting a smaller wearable than something like a smart fitness watch (like the Sense), but still with a lot of the most popular and useful health monitoring capabilities. Let’s take a look at what’s new.
What’s new in Charge 5/what’s different from Charge 4?
Fitbit has added a new, brighter light in the Charge 5, twice as bright as the Charge 4’s display. While the display size hasn’t changed between the Charge 4 and the 5, the Charge 5 has moved beyond the monochrome OLED touchscreen to a full-colour AMOLED screen, which opens up a world of possibilities for graphs, gradients, and animations.
They’ve added both an electrodermal activity stress monitor and an electrocardiogram sensor (more on those later).
The Charge 5’s bezel is stainless steel and has more curves to it than the Charge 4. The 5 is also a bit thinner.
Battery life
The battery life for fitness trackers is always dependant on which features you enable; things like GPS tracking and heart-rate monitoring will drain the battery faster as they have to monitor and communicate with the watch continually. Fitbit claims you’ll get about seven days worth of use from a single charge, but that continuous GPS and “always-on” display mode will shorten that to closer to 5 days.
In my use and testing I’m easily able to get that and it’s a treat not to need to charge my band nightly, like I do with my Apple Watch.
Waterproofing
The Charge 5 is water-resistant to 50 meters and won’t have any issues with being worn in any environment, including rain, the pool, or the shower. Depending on the style of wristband you have on the Charge 5, you may want to remove it in certain conditions, but the device itself won’t have any trouble in even the harshest conditions.
Built-in GPS
The Fitbit Charge 5 has a built-in GPS system, which means you can leave your phone behind when you go for your run. It will track your real-time pace and distance, as well as track your route for a workout intensity map in the Fitbit app to see your heart-rate zones and pace throughout your run.
Fitbit also offers guided audio workouts with a Premium membership (an introductory six-month membership can be included when purchasing the Charge 5).
Overall review:
Overall, Fitbits are capable, reliable and good looking fitness trackers. Even without signing up for Fitbit Premium, you can still get a lot of info and data about your health.
I really like the Fitbit Charge 5 a lot for keeping tabs on my activity, giving me nudges to move throughout the day. I think they’re an easy to use and affordable way to keep tabs on your health. I also like the slim, subtle look of a tracker, and find the Charge line is a good balance between slim and unobtrusive device while still giving you a good size colour screen. The battery life is also phenomenal and I can get my notifications even if Apple doesn’t let me respond to them on my Fitbit.
Downsides? I do wish the reminders and notifications came in a little stronger. And I remain not completely sold on the usefulness of the skin temperature sensor and the blood oxygen monitor. - Наука та технологія
I still use the Charge 2 daily. But this review convinced me to finally upgrade. Thank you kindly for the review.
Thanks for watching and glad it was helpful!
The blood oxygen monitor is actually really great for detecting breathing issues like sleep apnea.
Erin, thank you for your detailed review. Upgrading from an Inspire HR to this model.
Cool! Glad you found it helpful.
I just bought mine a couple days ago. It's beautiful and i love it. Subscribed!
Awesome! Thank you for the sub!
This was a really solid review, you’re a good writer. Thank you
Thank you too!
Streamlined, professional, perfect review. Thank you!
Thank you so very much for the compliment.
Thank You Erin, very useful review for me as I am deciding which Fitbit bests suits my needs 🙏🏼
Glad it was helpful!
Back to you Joe for the weather. :) nice job on vid
Haha, thanks!
I loved your clear concise presentation .... So to get it clear ...there is no spot spo2 reading possible .....does it give VO2 readings
Great Video Erin! Just a heads up, I noticed is that audio quality from your lapel mic sounds a bit compressed or distorted in comparison to the voice-overs on your B-roll.
Noted! And thanks so much!
Thanks for the clear no nonsense review.
I recall from a comprehensive review by DC Rainmaker in September 2021 that it was impossible to use both the onboard GPS and HRM consecutively with the Charge 5 as the GPS a will only work if the strap is loose enough to get a finger between the face and wrist meanIng the HRM couldn’t read the wearers pulse.
I understand there is an option to tether the watch to a smartphone but if you can’t take a phone on a run/ride/hike etc you’ll have to sacrifice either HRM or GPS.
What was your experience of this? Has it been rectified?
Thanks.
This is the best review !
Thanks so much Pablo, much appreciated!
Great review
Thank you!
hi Erin - nice review clear and concise -- i've been wearing my charge 2 since forever, the last 18 months it's had a diagonal split right across the face from some direct hit but it's always worked fine ! i'm gonna buy the 5 even tho the additional features don't appear so interesting for myself i have a good gps on my iphone and i always take it when i run for the music and to look at the fitbit running dashboard - for me the biggest selling point for any fitbit tracker is the community of users
thanks for your review - and btw ... i love your eye movement :)
Thanks for the comment!
Why does the Fitbit 5 not count stairs? My previous one did. I love that because my job involves multi steps on stairs. 😢
Thanks Erin.
You are so welcome!
Thanks
Is there an option to lock the screen when you are tracking a workout? For instance if I wear my charge 5 under my hockey equipment can I lock the screen so my workout won’t cancel on its own?
Hi Erin, thanks for the review, it was really helpful. I'm thinking of buying one... but I have a question that you might be able to help me with. You mentioned that you were not sold on the usefulness of the skin temperature sensor and the blood oxygen monitor. Is that because the readings were not accurate or you did not find the functions helpful?
Great question. I don’t see how knowing blood oxygen from overnight sleeping can be extremely useful. I guess it’s kind of interesting to know, but I feel like if you really need more detailed readings, waiting a full 24 hours for an update is probably not helpful.
As someone with sleep apnea I think having a spo2 while sleeping is a fantastic feature along with the breathing rates. Sleep monitoring and heart rate at the only reason I am considering this device.
Just got mine yesterday…how long does the O2 sat take to read? Maybe it takes more than a day/night?🤷🏻♀️
I can't find ecg on my watch...only eda...is ecg only with premium?
I have the Black Fitbit Charge 5
I have both charge 2 and 5 my charge 2 is old and cracked but I keep ending up back to it because the 5 doesn’t accurately track heart rate for things like runs so I’m stuck using both, then they don’t sync so well together date wise.
All the other features are great though, have you had this issue or been ab,e to solve it as without accurate heart rate it’s a bit useless to me
Ijhave a charger 2 and want to upgrade thanks for your info on the charger 5 i'm going to upgrade with a charger 5.
No problem 👍
when I arrive in Brazil I will buy
Hope you enjoy it!
I like that the charge 5 is still slim but has big text and color screen
My sleep score is hit and miss !! I have tried everything synced the app to my watch several times all I really get on a consistence basis is my steps
Hi Erin. . .I also have a Fitbit charge 5 and love it. I have had issues with the ECG feature; it keeps telling me to open my phone. I have an android phone and only have the Fitbit app on my iPad. BTW. . .I wear my tracker on my ankle to make every step count!
On your ankle!? And it fits OK? Doesn’t feel weird?
@@ErinLawrenceTV No, it doesn’t feel weird; I don’t even notice it!
Still doesn't have anything on an amazfit bip S with month long battery life with an always on colour screen.
Can't find any reviews that show putting it on, taking off. How easy or hard? Does it need adjustment or can it stretch over the hand?
Easy to put on and take off in my opinion. It won’t stretch over the hand.
Wich one is that you can answer your phone from
I have used the HR inspire and the versa 3, both lasted a little over a year and literally DIED right after. I have gotten accustomed to wearing trackers, I want a replacement but I am really scared to purchase yet another fitbit device
Sorry to hear that Diana :(
Thank you for your helpful review Erin! I am about to order the charge 5 with the blue strap like the one you are wearing in the video. I wonder if this colour gets dirty often and is it hard to clean? Thank you
Glad it was helpful! No, that strap actually seems to avoid dirt buildup... or at least it's less noticeable. It wipes clean with a damp cloth easily.
@@ErinLawrenceTV thank you Erin, I appreciate your reply, I managed to find a black one and you are right, it is so silky smooth, it will be easier to keep clean and I love the feel of it.
Erin with the jumpscare 5:25
Ha!
Can you please show how the Fitbit 5 band works I mean attaches on the wrist ! I found some of the earlier Fitbit bands were not good & lost my tracker!
Thank you!
I recently returned the Fitbit Sense I bought a month ago because the timer and alarm vibration was too soft even on the Strong setting. I often slept through the alarm whereas I always woke with my old Versa and Versa 2 trackers. I gave those to my children and now I’m not sure if the Charge 5 has the same gentle vibration because you’ve just said the notifications are a bit too gentle. Can anyone please give me feedback and advice about this alarm/notification vibration feature, please? Thank you.
Mines arriving today I'll let ya know how it does tomorrow.
I think I’ve tried almost every Fitbit since the original… I haven’t noticed a major difference in the vibrations myself, but I guess we all have different thresholds. 🙂
Did you ask the Fitbit community?
I'm very disappointed with my Fitbit Charge 5, solely due to the charging process. When I connect it, it doesn't always charge. I make sure it's connected properly. I've used 3 different USB ports tonight and it's not charging on any of them. Absolutely infuriating 😡 I wish I could have my old Charge 2!!!
That's terrible, so sorry to hear that :(
I still have my charge 2, it tracks exercise more accurately I think part because there were two lights on that version instead of the 1. I also have a spare, got the charge 5 when on sale but it’s always impossible to return them if you do hate them I just hope they don’t stop allowing the app for the charge 2 (main reason I got a newer model .
Have you has issues with the heart rate readings too ?
It is difficult to use. Taping the screen doesn't work often. It also gets frozen and unresponsive. I will be buying a different model.
Sorry to hear that.
Based upon my experience with the Fitbit Ionic recall, I will never buy another Fitbit. They have failed to provide the refund. They have provide multiple stories, no two match. Over 3 months and counting.
So sorry to hear that!
Ya didn't mention contactless payments, super useful stuff.
For sure!
Mine lasted six months. Blank screen, will not charge and assistance from Fitbit clueless. Lots of issues reported after software updates
That's not good.
When my Fitbit Charge 2 died, I talked with customer service and mailed in my Charge 2. They replied saying it could not be fixed. They graciously offered a $75 discount to buy another Fitbit which had to be used in within 30 days. I considered this to be good customer service. Stay healthy.
Would the Fitbit be okay in a sauna??
It is!
No instant spo2 details breaks the deal for me
Yeah. That’s odd, right?
😀
Erin - ever since Google swallow Fitbit ALL METRICS MUST BE PAID FOR, THE PREMIUM BENEFITS COSTS 80 DOLLAR PER YEAR SO I SWITCHED TO GARMIN
How do you like garmin? Is their sleep tracking as good as fitbit?
I HAVE RETURNED (March 2022) FOR A FULL REFUND MY NEW CHARGE 5 after Fitbit support acknowledged FITBIT has been working on a software fix to issues affecting battery life. NO ETA is know for the fix to the software. DO NOT BUY THIS watch until FITBIT comes clear about the fix to the batteries issues which can reduce the expected life from 5 days to 1 1/2 day. BTW, I went back to using my old Charge 2.
Thank you Erin
Welcome!