http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/ Engadget Comments for Fitbit review http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 12:32PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 1:12PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
The software/meals side can easily be improved but they should include some sort of heart rate monitor to better count calories and sleep, maybe a way to measure body fat %...

And maybe, (if the device is successful enough to release new hardware), have a few buttons on the device itself for preset routines/meals so you can enter in your exercise and food intake instantly instead of having to remember it all at the end of the day.]]>Oct 15th 2009 12:34PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 12:36PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 4:50PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
and if really all you are getting is the steps then a $5 pedometer would be all you need. granted the fitbit is more than that, a 95% discount is pretty steep.]]>Oct 15th 2009 12:38PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 1:01PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
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What about time spent on the subway or in a car, where the user can be jostled around but exerts no extra calories? The reviewer should have covered that...]]>Oct 15th 2009 1:39PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 2:02PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
Otherwise, this thing is just meh. And yeah, this will definitely bite the dust.]]>Oct 15th 2009 3:30PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 4:03PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 1:54PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
I hate the food tracking feature of the site. I prefer http://www.thedailyplate.com/ for that. Overall I'm quite pleased with my FitBit knowing I have all of this data coming in about what i've been doing so I have something to compare it to in the future. You've got to look at this thing for the long term!]]>Oct 15th 2009 2:00PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 2:28PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 16th 2009 11:31AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
Also, most people who have it seem to find it very accurate WHEN CLIPPED to them. I don't think this is really unexpected vs it bouncing in your pocket - it is an accelerometer afterall.

I'm keeping my preorder... but glad if some cancel and I move up on the list!]]>Oct 15th 2009 3:17PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
This is a great middle of the road device, the algorythms are great and pretty acurate. The best things about it are:
The community, they care about user feedback and are constantly making changes.
The size of the device (with built in clip). not only is it small but it can track movement when clipped at a lot of different places and different angles, many devices must be oriented a certain way, and a certain location and are often the size of a cellphone or small pager/beeper.

I could go on and on, the truth is if you don't care about how much your moving around, walking, and generally active - don't get the device... for everyone else I would/have chosen this over the competition

Check out the competition (bodybugg, gowearfit, omron, biotrainer, muve, nike plus, fitpod) and you'll realize why this is different.]]>Oct 15th 2009 3:26PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
Perhaps the generic "tech" audience isn't the target user for the FitBit, because it's not just some gadget. Like previous commenters, I've used pedometers, heart rate monitors, and GPS fitness devices. FitBit falls under a completely different category, and it does its job really well. ]]>Oct 15th 2009 3:57PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 4:09PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 4:14PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
It is always easy to say what it should include, what it should do, but who on here had this great idea and put it into action? IF you aren't trying to be less sedentary and want something to work magic on you, go to your fairy godmother and not to fitbit. As for me, Fitbit is my choice and I am proud to say that I was one of their few beta testers of the hardware, as well as everyday user of it since the end of August.]]>Oct 15th 2009 4:07PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
i used to use my sony ericsson w850i to track my steps, since it has a built-in pedometer. being able to have all that data wirelessly upload to a website and see a graph of the data is way more helpful than only having it on my phone. and better still, the data uploads when you're near any fitbit base station, not just your own. i got a fitbit for a friend, and everytime i'm over at their house, my data syncs up to the website.]]>Oct 15th 2009 4:24PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
http://www.directlife.philips.com/

Looks like a similar product. Their tracker isn't free ($12.50 a month) but it seems to give you suggestions based on your data.

It doesn't track your sleeping habits.

It is waterproof, but I don't swim so...]]>Oct 15th 2009 5:59PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
I do not recall doing so well on the paper. Probably because I am not that good of a writer and my problem may have seemed too unimportant.

I am glad to see such a device on the market. And I am happy to learn about other similar products out there.]]>Oct 15th 2009 6:20PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
I completely agree with you about the fact that people don't receive quick feedback on their daily energy intake and expenditure and I think that tackling this issue developing some easy to use tool can improve the health of the general population (not only in United States).

Would you mind to send me your article?

Cheers,
Alex]]>Oct 23rd 2009 1:20AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/Oct 15th 2009 7:02PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
Anyone who has actually used a $5 pedometer (or a $40 pedometer) and looked at the accuracy - plus the difficult of charting effort over time - can figure out the difference.]]>Oct 16th 2009 10:21AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
IT'S AN EXPENSIVE PEDOMETER

OK, so it does more, and maybe it's more accurate, but a) it doesn't tell you much that's very useful, and b) hardly anyone will actually use it.

Pass.

Jeff Yablon
President & CEO
http://answerguy.com]]>Oct 16th 2009 11:53AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
The device is cool. But the "whole product experience" is seriously lacking. The fact that you have to look in multiple places to learn how to use the sleep setting, or that there is a reset button. The website isn't great (something like sparkpeople.com is more fully-featured) and while customer support is responsive, they are weirdly abrupt and automaton-like. They're not ready for prime-time yet - I know people who'd be motivated by this device, but I'm not ready to recommend them yet.]]>Oct 16th 2009 3:02PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
Sure it's a digital sensor, and not one of the $4 pedometers. So, like a high end Omron, $20-30. Then it ads a rather useless, and expensive, wireless connectivity.

$100 buys you;

1. High end pedometer, $20-30, maybe 40, to track your steps.
2. BT GPS, $35-40, to connect to your phone and free software to track distance, speed, route, etc.
3. Heart rate monitor, $20, maybe 30.

That's a lot more fun and stats.

Give the FitBit a standard USB-connection and knock it down to $30. I do love the design. And make the website a standalone software. ]]>Oct 16th 2009 8:43PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
Also, if the company does go out of business, you are not totally reliant on the website, you can view steps taken, distance, and calories burned at anytime on the device itself (OLED), as well as a visual that rates how active you are on that day based on how long the graphic is on the side of the FitBit. However this review failed to mention either of those features...]]>Oct 22nd 2009 6:07PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
not a pedometer or calorie counter, its just about pacing you and keeping your fitness motivation up.

plays music that matches the speed you are working out at.

http://www.cadenceapp.com

]]>Oct 26th 2009 4:20PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/15/fitbit-review/
It's also good for recording steps and other thing to give a brief idea of what my exercises are doing.

As for value, for me I spent money on other things that I have not used as much - so I guess I getting my value out of it.]]>Jun 20th 2010 11:41PM