our opinion on the sports smart health connected watch

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The Fitbit Versa is the latest addition to the American brand's range of activity trackers. After a disappointing Blaze and a promising Ionic, this new attempt is crucial in Fitbit's strategy. Does the Versa live up to expectations? Can it win in the smart health connected watch market? Check out my opinion in this Review.

Installation

It can not be said that my early experience with the Fitbit Versa was ideal. While the process seems simple (just download the Fitbit app, and add the Versa) I ran into a wall when I tried to link it with my OnePlus 5T. After several attempts, I used the Huawei P20 that we are currently testing and the installation has started, and it lasts … a long time. Allow a good half hour for the watch to be updated and operational. I do not know if it's due to the youth of the watch, which is in its early versions, but I hope everything will accelerate over time.

Design and Hardware

I have a contrasting experience with Fitbit on this point. While I really like the design of products like the Flex 2 or the Alta, I absolutely did not like the one of the Blaze and the Ionic. On this point, the Versa is, in my opinion, a real success. The watch is fine and the heart sensor does not create a hump as is often the case. The Versa is very comfortable to wear and you can find other bracelets on sale to accessorize the watch.

The watch is fine, without being too big or too small. Fitbit chose a design very close to that of the Apple Watch, and it's a great idea, as the watch goes on both a male and a female wrist. The Fitbit Versa is available in black, gray and rose gold. It has 3 buttons, which are used to navigate.

The screen is also a good surprise, and it is much better than that of the Vivoactive 3 that we loved during our Review. It is very visible even in full sun, and its definition is pleasing to the naked eye.

The Versa is waterproof and so you can take a shower with, but especially follow your swimming sessions making it a true multisport watch. The set looks solid, and I did not make any scratches or impacts on the watch during my weeks of use.

Application and Features

Fitbit does Fitbit. No, distance (extrapolated), calories burned, floors gravis, heart rate, active minutes, it follows the same data daily as its other flagship sensors. The quality of sleep is an important point for Fitbit and her phase tracking (awake, light, deep, paradoxical), has really refined since the last models.

In addition to this, the Fitbit Versa allows you to follow sessions of different sports (running, swimming, cycling, treadmill, weight training, interval timer and gym). The presence of a GPS could make the Versa an Apple Watch Killer at the level of activity tracking and it's really more than a pity. It's all the more unfortunate that Fitbit has made the choice, since the Ionic, to integrate a music player on its watches to get rid of the phone during the sport, by using Bluetooth headphones. Except that to have the course, you need the Fitbit app with you …

Another appreciable point of the watch, the Fitbit Pay system, which I used several times. The configuration is very simple, just add the card (a compatible bank) in the application to register a 4-digit code, which will be asked on the watch. To trigger the watch, a long press on the left button takes you to Fitbit Pay, there is more to use the contactless to pay. Just after the transaction, a green check appears on the watch, and a push is made from the application. This is one of the new features that works best (light years from their management of music …) and we feel that the acquisition of the startup Corner has saved time to the creation of Fitbit Pay.

Regarding the application, if you have already had a product Fitbit you will not be lost, with its dashboard that includes all the data. For each one you will be able to see the detail, and your evolution compared to the previous days. In the upper right you have access to the settings of the Versa, with the choice of dials, applications, Fitbit Pay cards, and music (whose transfer requires a computer).

Navigation on the watch is simple and uses a combination of the three buttons and the touch screen. The left button will return to the previous screen, and a long press will bring you to Fitbit Pay, music and setting notifications and auto ignition to wrist movement. The upper right button is used to confirm, and the lower button varies depending on the application menus. The basic interface is very simple, with the dial in the middle, notifications thanks to a swipe up and access to fitness data with a swipe down. Swiper from health home to the right allows you to navigate between applications.

The difference between a sports watch and a smartwatch is its ability to receive notifications and use applications. The Fitbit catalog is still in its infancy, although some progress has been made since the release of the Ionic, Fitbit OS is only very recent. The notifications part caused me a lot of problems of operation (stop operation), but the P20 that I Review is in beta program, which should not have helped.

Music management could also be improved. I use Spotify daily, and only Deezer or native music is offered. So I made the (long) process to send music (legal MP3s eh) in my Versa, and it's very very long. The process via Deezer (thanks to the free 30-day trial) is a bit more, simple, just go to the Fitbit app and select the playlists to sync, all you have to do is wait. In all cases, and for more choices, the arrival of Spotify is in my opinion indispensable.

Autonomy

The announced autonomy of the Fitbit Versa is 4 days and it exceeds them if you do not do sports sessions regularly. It's still weaker than the Ionic, while the Versa does not ship GPS contrary to its big sister. However, Fitbit is making big progress on the point of autonomy, and that of the Versa is a real asset competitors such as Wear OS watches, the Samsung range or the Apple Watch.

As is often the case with smart health connected objects of this type, charging is done via a proprietary cable, which has the particularity of keeping the watch in place, be careful anyway under penalty of having to return to the box if you lose it.

My opinion after this Review Fitbit Versa

Fitbit really did a great job with the Versa. The Blaze was for me a fail, both in terms of design and value for money. The Versa is light years away, and exceeds the Ionic at the design level. This is the first time that I have found a Fitbit smartwatch enough to carry it on a daily basis. Its price is not very high, and its screen is a real success. The sports ecosystem of the brand is one of the best, and you will have no trouble finding friends using a Fitbit to motivate you on a daily basis.

To compete with the Apple Watch, it would take two things in my opinion. On the one hand the integration of the GPS in native (as on the Ionic) and that the catalog of application is widening seriously. However it is clear that Fitbit is improving day by day, and that the brand is no longer very far from transforming the Review in this segment of the market.

Fitbit Ionic vs. Fitbit Versa # STUFFIGHT3

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