How To Put On Fit Flex Depends

Tom's Guide Verdict

If you lot want to track your activities with an inexpensive fitness tracker that doesn't wait like 1, you'll appreciate the $99 Fitbit Flex 2.

Pros

+
Automated activeness tracking
+
Slim and lightweight
+
Water-resistant

Cons

-
Fewer activities tracked when worn around the neck
-
Call and text notifications could be glitchy with Android devices

Fitbit's newest entry-level fitness tracker, the $99.95 Flex 2, has more than features than you might await from a device this minor. An improvement from the first, very basic Fitbit Flex, the Flex 2 can automatically rails activities across steps and sleep, including running, cycling, aerobic workouts and swimming. That makes for saved time and less work inputting activities post-conditioning.

Design

The Flex 2's blueprint is pretty unassuming. The tracker is tiny compared with others we've tested, and its classic wristband is simple. Because it's so thin, it'southward more bracelet-like than the original Fitbit Flex, but it still holds a 3-centrality accelerometer for activity tracking and a vibration motor for alerts in a 0.83-ounce parcel. At 1.25 x 0.35 x 0.27 inches, it's thirty per centum smaller than the original Fitbit Flex. The tracker comes with both small and large classic elastomer bands, plus a charging cable.

(Image credit: Nick Bush/Tom's Guide)

The Flex ii was so slim and lightweight in the pocket-size classic band that I barely noticed it while wearing it for a day or 2. Unlike the older Flex, information technology's water-resistant; I liked that I didn't have to accept it off earlier getting into the shower, and thus didn't disrupt my day-to-day routine.

Five LEDs aligned vertically along the wristband light up to tell you lot your progress toward a primary goal that you designate, with each of the four LEDs representing a quarter of your goal. The fifth LED uses colour coding to signify an alarm, and to tell you whether you lot're receiving a text or call on your paired Android or iOS smartphone, when it's time to get upwards and become some exercise, and when you've met your activeness goal.

There's ane item on the Flex 2's classic ring that I found very beneficial: It has a tighter-plumbing equipment, surgical-grade stainless-steel clasp, making it harder for the band to autumn off, particularly during more than rigorous workouts — or, say, a very intense mosh pit at a punk rock show, where my first-generation Fitbit Accuse fell off 3 times. But despite the more secure Flex 2 classic-ring clasp, I'd yet like to encounter a version with a traditional watch clasp, which would likely exist more secure.

MORE: The Best GPS Watches for Sports and Athletics

Accessories

If the sporty-elastomer, somewhat-plasticky look isn't for you, you can get i of Fitbit'due south more stylish accessories, including its Luxe collection bangles, that you snap into the Flex 2. The bangles come in silver stainless steel for $89.95 and plated in 22-karat gold or rose gold for $99.95.

Credit: Nick Bush/Tom's Guide — (Paradigm credit: Nick Bush-league/Tom'south Guide)

While attractive, the bangles are a chip heavy, as you might expect with jewelry. They come in large and modest sizes; just they're not adaptable, so they may hang too loosely around your wrist and move around a lot more than than the tracker would in a archetype band. Simply despite the loose fit, the Flex 2 tracked steps just as well in a bangle as information technology did in a classic band.

The most annoying part of it wearing the tracker in a bangle, though, was a slight clattering audio when the Flex 2 vibrated equally a silent alarm or reminder to motion.

I liked that I didn't have to take it off before getting into the shower.

The Fitbit Flex 2 tin can also be worn clipped into the pendant of a $99.95 necklace. However, Fitbit says that, when the Flex 2 is worn this way, certain activity readings may exist inaccurate. Therefore, when the tracker detects the magnet built into the enclosure on the pendant, it disables automatic activeness and sleep detection.

Fitbit notes that, similar other jewelry, its Luxe accessories can tarnish, and thus users should avoid contact with things such as perfume, lotion and even dyed materials like denim.

Action Tracking

Similar its predecessor, the Flex 2 tracks steps and slumber. Simply it also adds automatic exercise recognition with a feature Fitbit calls SmartTrack, which lets you rail walks, runs, outdoor cycling, sports, aerobic workouts, elliptical workouts and swimming, all without opening the app, ideally.

When I set the Flex 2 to runway my workouts on an elliptical car, though, its approximate of how long I was on the machine fell several minutes short of reality. However, I was able to go into the app and conform the duration of the workout to record it accurately. Step counts also tended to come a little brusk, particularly while I was walking with a cup of coffee in my hand, equally I exercise every morning. For example, it counted 500 steps equally 465. However, within Fitbit'south app, you can manually enter your stride length for walking and running, to enable a more than precise measurement.

If the sporty elastomer band isn't for yous, you tin get one of Fitbit'south fashionable jewelry-like accessories.

Unlike the showtime-generation Flex, the Flex 2 is "swim-proof," every bit the company calls information technology, with h2o resistance up to 50 meters (164 anxiety). Fitbit says the Flex 2 can automatically detect the number of laps you do in a pool when you specify the puddle length. It cannot track swimming in open h2o, though — a feature offered by some more tricked-out (just more than expensive) GPS watches.

More: All-time GPS watches

App

The indicator lights on the Flex 2 probably won't be enough for people who really want to track their activities and other stats, especially over periods longer than a day. To exercise that, you'll rely on the Fitbit app, which works with devices running Android 4.three or later or the iPhone 4S and afterwards models. You tin likewise sync your data with Macs running Os Ten 10.6 and up and devices running Windows ten, according to Fitbit, just you lot'll need an internet connection in order to sync.

When yous open the Fitbit app, your dashboard volition show you your progress for the day, including steps, the distance you've traveled, other practise, slumber, estimated calories burned and more. It likewise will display food and water consumed and your weight, if you choose to enter that information manually. Y'all can prioritize your stats based on what you'd like to see first. If you want to enable call and text-bulletin notifications and silent alarms, with a tracker vibration for each, yous'll gear up that up in the app equally well.

In our testing, most notifications failed to come through to the Flex 2 from my HTC One M9. Several rounds of troubleshooting with Fitbit failed to resolve the effect, but when I paired it with an iPhone 6s, both telephone call and text notifications came through without any bug. According to a Fitbit representative, if an Android device is managing multiple Bluetooth connections simultaneously, your Fitbit tracker might finish syncing or stop receiving call, text and calendar notifications, or it could cause interruptions with any consistently streaming Bluetooth connectedness.

The Flex 2 has a new feature that sends you reminders to move. When you set up that role in the app, your tracker volition vibrate every hour to remind you to become up and take at least 250 steps. Simply as someone who works at a desk with deadlines all day, I would have liked an pick to get a reminder to movement every ii hours instead of every hour. You tin can also prepare to eight silent alarms that volition vibrate your tracker and are dismissed with a couple of taps.

To help motivate Fitbit users, the app's Fitbit Challenges section lets users cull a number of sightseeing destinations and events, and and so walk the altitude it would take to enjoy the scenery there. The app also lets users connect with friends and take office in friendly competition with activity challenges.

Slumber Tracking

When I used Fitbit's normal sleep-tracking settings, the sleep stats that the Flex 2 recorded were roughly in line with what I've seen while using the sleep-tracking feature on other wearable devices. On your Fitbit.com dashboard, you can set up the device's sleep-tracking sensitivity. When information technology'south fix to Sensitive, it pays attending to smaller movements, so under that setting, it will probably show that you had less sleep than information technology would with the Normal sleep setting enabled.

A new characteristic on the Flex ii reminds you to motility.

While set to Sensitive, the Fitbit app told me that I slept 4 or five hours a night, with 2 hours or more spent restless. Using the Normal setting, it told me that I slept almost an hour more than that. The slumber-tracking results on any fettle device can exist skewed if you slumber with a partner, though, especially ane who tosses and turns at night.

If, for some reason, you get a week without syncing your Flex 2 with your phone or computer, the tracker itself will save seven days of detailed activeness data. It can as well salvage your full activities for the day for 30 days, according to Fitbit.

MORE: Which Fitbit is Right For You?

Battery Life

The Flex 2 is powered by a rechargeable lithium-polymer battery that Fitbit says should last well-nigh five days for near users. Mine lasted four days, but I might take experienced faster battery drain because I set eight daily alarms, hourly reminders to motion for 13 hours of the twenty-four hours, and call and text notifications.

Fitbit has a proprietary USB cable for charging the Flex 2, and you tin fully recharge the device in 1 to 2 hours. But if yous lose your cable or desire another, you lot'll have to spend $xx for some other official Fitbit cablevision.

Bottom Line

The $99 Fitbit Flex 2 is a great fit for those who want to runway their steps, exercise and sleep without wearing a bulky device or plasticky band. Its water resistance means y'all don't have to accept it off every 24-hour interval, and stylish accessories make this device among the more attractive fitness trackers around. Call and text notifications are a plus, but they can be erratic if you're using an Android smartphone. All told, the automatic fitness tracking features and detailed Fitbit app brand the Flex 2 worth information technology.

Althea Chang is Associate Director of Content Development for Consumer Reports and was previously a Senior Author for Tom's Guide, roofing mobile devices, health and fettle gadgets and auto tech.