Jawbone Up2
Product Review: http://www.cnet.com/products/jawbone-up2/#ftag=CAD187281f
CNET rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)
The good: The Up2 provides simple activity and automatic sleep tracking in a slim and fashionable design. The band has good battery life and can be worn in the shower. The Jawbone mobile app includes smart coaching and can be paired with many popular third-party apps.
The bad: It doesn’t have a display for quickly checking fitness progress and there’s no heart-rate tracking. The sleep tracking tends to overestimate and the band can’t be worn while swimming.
The cost: $67.99 to $99.95
The bottom line: A better fit and superior software make the redesigned Jawbone Up2 our favorite everyday fitness band.
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Fitbit Charge HR
Product Review: http://www.cnet.com/products/fitbit-charge-hr/#ftag=CAD187281f
CNET rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)
The good: Continuous heart rate tracking. Slim design. Affordable price. Works with Windows, iPhone and Android phones. Fitbit’s massive popularity means you’ll be able to join up and compete with friends. Connects with many third-party fitness apps. Automatic sleep and activity tracking. Five-day battery life.
The bad: Design and fit aren’t ideal for glancing at heart rate. Not shower- or swim-friendly. OLED display turns off after a few seconds, which gets annoying. Heart-rate coaching and goal-setting aren’t intuitive.
The cost: $128.79 to $149.99
The bottom line: Fitbit’s Charge HR combines heart rate tracking, sleep tracking and fitness in an affordable, slim band with good battery life. It’s a hard combination to beat.
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Fitbit Alta
Product Review: http://www.cnet.com/products/fitbit-alta/#ftag=CAD187281f
CNET rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)
The good: The Fitbit Alta is a stylish fitness tracker with swappable bands, basic phone notifications and weeklong battery life. The Move alerts bring something new. Fitbit’s software interface is still one of our favorites, and has the largest social base as well.
The bad: There’s no heart rate sensor, and it can’t be worn in the shower. The tracker is expensive for what it can do and so are the accessory straps. The display is susceptible to scratches, and notifications are hard to read.
The cost: $129 to $129.99
The bottom line: While ultimately a more stylish (but heart rate-free) version of the older Charge HR, the Fitbit Alta is a winning fitness tracker with solid style appeal.
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Apple Watch
Product Review: http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-watch/#ftag=CAD187281f
CNET rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)
The good: The Apple Watch is a beautifully constructed, compact smartwatch. It’s feature-packed, with solid fitness software, hundreds of apps and the ability to send and receive calls via an iPhone.
The bad: Battery only lasts a little more than a day; most models and configurations cost more than they should; requires an iPhone 5 or later to work; interface can be confusing; sometimes slow to communicate with a paired iPhone.
The cost: $649
The bottom line: The Apple Watch was the most ambitious, well-constructed smartwatch ever seen at the time of its release. The smaller 38mm model recently received a price cut to $299.
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The following CNET staff contributed to this story: Associate Editor Dan Graziano, Senior Editor Scott Stein and Senior Editor Laura K. Cucullu. For more reviews of personal technology products, please visit www.cnet.com.
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