A few weeks ago news spread out across the digital waves about three new products from Fitbit, well now they’ve gone and unveiled them publicly.
First up is the Charge, the ‘basic’ activity tracker. This device tracks all the things your standard Fitbit tracker will right now: steps, calories, distance floors climbed. In addition to this the devices OLED screen now displays the time meaning it can act as a basic watch, reducing the need for several things strapped to your wrist. Fitbit are also shouting about their new automatic sleep tracking, while the press release doesn’t go into too much detail I assume this means sleep is tracked automatically rather than the user having to put the tracker into sleep mode themselves. Connected to your phone the tracker also displays caller ID when a call comes through on your phone.
Next up is the Charge HR, taking all the features of the standard Charge it adds a heart rate monitor using Fitbit’s newly developed ‘Pure Pulse’ optical sensor. This allows the wearer to track their pulse 24/7 giving a much more detailed overview of their health. The optical sensor does knock the battery life very slightly with Fitbit claiming the Charge HR can go for 5 days compared to the Charge’s 7 day claim.
Finally there is the Surge. This is a different beast altogether, stepping further into Smartwatch territory than either the Charge or Charge HR dared to go. Sporting a much larger display this device will display calls, messages and offer music player control. It’s not quite the full Android Wear experience but for fitness enthusiasts it’s all they need when out running. The watch is packed with 8 sensors to track you. 3 axis accelerometers, gyroscope, compass, ambient light sensor, GPS and the Pure Pulse heart rate sensor. Everything you’d expect from a sports watch and more coupled with Fitbit’s very clever algorithms. Fitbit say that with some clever battery management you can expect 7 days from the Surge, I don’t really know why they couldn’t do the same with the other two…
The Fitbit Charge will be available on the 17th of November for £99.99 in black, slate, blue and burgundy. The Charge HR and Surge will be available early 2015 for £119.99 and £199.99 respectively. We will try to bring you a hands-on review as soon as we can.
Fitbit Announces Fitbit Charge, Fitbit Charge HR and Fitbit Surge – 3 New Fitness Trackers for Everyday, Active and Performance Consumers
Powerful lineup features continuous, automatic heart rate tracking; GPS; smartwatch functionality; plus all day activity and automatic sleep tracking
LONDON– October 27, 2014 – Fitbit, Inc., the market leader in the fast-growing Connected Health and Fitness category, today unveiled three new activity and sleep-tracking products: Fitbit Charge™, Fitbit Charge HR™ and Fitbit Surge™. Continuing its mission to inspire people to lead healthier, more active lives, Fitbit extends its award-winning line with innovative devices to help a range of consumers reach their health and fitness goals:
- Fitbit Charge – a high-performance wristband that delivers all-day activity tracking, real-time fitness stats and Caller ID right on the wrist for people who want to step up their everyday activities to improve their overall health
- Fitbit Charge HR – an advanced tracker that delivers continuous, automatic wrist-based heart rate, Caller ID and all-day activity tracking for active users: regular exercisers looking to push their fitness further
- Fitbit Surge – a sleek Fitness Super Watch that offers the best of GPS, continuous wrist-based heart rate, all-day fitness tracking, and smartwatch functionality in one device, for people dedicated to reaching their peak performance
Energise Every Day with Fitbit Charge
Fitbit Charge is ideal for people looking to track everyday activity to take their fitness to the next level. This high-performance wristband displays all the most important stats right on the wrist.
Fitbit Charge features include:
- Tracking of steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned and floors climbed
- Exercise tracking to easily record workouts, see real-time exercise stats and have summaries appear automatically on the Fitbit dashboard
- Bright, OLED display showing time of day and real-time stats
- New automatic sleep detection monitors sleep quality using motion analysis to understand sleep and wake times; also features a silent, vibrating alarm
- New Caller ID helps users stay connected to incoming calls; wristband vibrates and shows caller’s name or number when a smartphone is nearby
- High-quality, water-resistant, comfortable new textured wristband design with an improved clasp
- Up to 7 days of battery life so you can track an entire week with just one charge
Every Beat Counts with Fitbit Charge HR
Fitbit Charge HR is designed for more active users who are dedicated to staying fit and want a full picture of their health – in and out of the gym. Fitbit Charge HR features Fitbit’s proprietary PurePulse™ optical heart rate technology, which provides continuous and automatic wrist-based heart rate tracking, without an uncomfortable chest strap. PurePulse uses safe LED lights to detect blood volume changes when your heart beats, right on your wrist and applies Fitbit’s finely tuned algorithms to deliver heart rate tracking 24/7. PurePulse helps users:
- Get accurate calorie burn for more activities– during exercise and everyday activities like walking, running, biking, lifting weights, spinning, skiing, yoga, Pilates and more
- Maximise training with fat burning, cardio and peak heart rate zones
- Maintain workout intensity by reaching your target heart rate
- Optimise health through heart rate trends and resting heart rate, an important measure of overall heart health and cardiovascular fitness
Fitbit Charge HR includes all the great benefits of Fitbit Charge, plus:
- Continuous heart rate right on the wrist 24/7 to get more accurate all-day calorie burn, reach target workout intensity and maximise training
- All-day insights into overall heart health including resting heart rate and heart rate trends, alongside stats like steps, distance, floors climbed, calories and active minutes
- Up to 5 days of battery life – Charge HR is specially designed with battery efficient technology, so you can spend more time tracking and less time charging
Train Smarter, Go Farther with Fitbit Surge
Fitbit Surge is Fitbit’s most advanced tracker to date, a sleek ‘Fitness Super Watch,’ designed for peak performance. Featuring 8-sensor technology that combines the power of all-day fitness tracking with GPS, heart rate tracking and smartwatch functionality, Fitbit Surge is ideal for users committed to training, dedicated to health and consistently looking to maximise progress.
Fitbit Surge includes all the breakthrough features of Fitbit Charge andFitbit Charge HR, plus:
- Built-in GPS delivers stats like pace, distance, elevation, split times, route history and workout summaries for smarter training
- Records multi-sport activities like running, cross-training and strength workouts; see comprehensive summaries with tailored metrics, workout intensity based on heart rate and calories burned
- Smartwatch features including Caller ID, text alerts and mobile music control let users train smarter and stay focused right from the wrist
- Eight sensors –3-axis accelerometers, gyroscope, compass, ambient light sensor, GPS and heart rate—working harmoniously to give users the most advanced tracking in the thinnest, lightest design on the market
- Backlit LCD touch screen display with customisable watch faces, makes it easy to navigate through real-time stats, workout apps and alarms
- Up to 7 days of battery life – Surge is specially designed with battery efficient technology, so you can track a work week or a marathon on just one charge
Pricing & Availability
Fitbit Charge is available from November 17, 2014 on Fitbit.com/UK and in leading retailers nationwide. Fitbit Charge HR and Fitbit Surge will be available broadly in early 2015
- Fitbit Charge (£99.99) is available in black, slate, blue* and burgundy*
- Fitbit Charge HR (£119.99) will be available in black, plum, blue* and tangerine*
- Fitbit Surge (£199.99) will be available in black, blue* and tangerine*
*These colours are coming soon. Fitbit Charge, Fitbit Charge HR andFitbit Surge will be available in small, large and extra-large sizes (extra-large only available through Fitbit.com).
