Samsung Gear Fit 2 Review: an improvement that could still be improved

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Despite a slow start, Samsung is back in the fitness tracker race with its new Samsung Gear Fit 2 and hopes to take the lead. This € 199 device is not only cheaper overall than its direct competitors, but it also offers more features. The bracelet hides a GPS to track your tracks, a heart rate monitoring and 4 GB of storage, so you can take your music with you. Coupled with Gear Fit 2 smartphone notifications and automatic activity tracking, you get a completely compelling device. However, there are still some obstacles to the Gear Fit 2 if it wants to win. We tell you everything.

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Mark : Samsungcategory: smart health connected braceletLogin: Bluetoothcompatibility: AndroidPrice: € 199Availability: AvailableTested with: Samsung galaxy s6

Buy the Samsung Gear Fit 2:

Gear Fit 2 Unboxing:

The Samsung fitness bracelet is presented in a black cardboard box with the simple indication "Samsung Gear Fit 2»Under the transparent plastic which reveals the fitness tracker of the Korean brand.

The size of the bracelet is indicated at the bottom, in the right corner: large or small, considering the fact that the Fit 2 is available in these two sizes.

Behind the box, you can find the most important features as well as the specifications of the object. The whole is true to Samsung's "less is more" ideal, understand that the simplest is sometimes the most effective.

The box will open on top, revealing the bracelet in the foreground. Under it is therefore the charger and a user manual.

The Gear Fit 2 benefits from simple, but effective packaging: a sober black with blue tones emphasizing the clean side of the bracelet. We know what we are buying when we look at the packaging.

Design and ergonomics:

Like the original Gear Fit, the Gear Fit 2 has a curved screen, but the arc is even more pronounced on the latest bracelet from Samsung. The change from the original Fit to the Fit 2 is not as radical as that from the first to the second generation of Microsoft tapes, for example, but the accentuated curvature makes it even more comfortable to wear.

In addition, the 1.5 inch AMOLED screen, which has a resolution of 432 x 216 pixels, is better integrated in the band itself. Its large display strip and rubber strap will show everyone that you are a fan of smart wristbands, but it is no more flashy than the Fitbit Charge.

The lightness of the Gear Fit 2 is appreciable, it is a little heavier than the Fitbit Charge HR, but lighter than the Vivoactive HR from Garmin. Equally important, its slim profile (0.47 inch) allows the user to have no trouble putting on his shirt.

Of them interaction buttons are present on the right side of the screen, a menu key and a back key. The rest will be done by touch on the screen.

However, make sure to adjust the Gear Fit 2 comfortably, so that the heart rate monitoring gives an accurate reading. Instead of a traditional watch clasp, you will need to thread one end of the band through a loop, then snap it to hold it in place. A manipulation that you may have to perform several times, since the bracelet tends to slip when trying to assemble on your wrist, especially for those with thin wrists.

The Gear Fit 2 is available in two sizes, as well as in three colors (black, blue and pink). Samsung wisely oriented the interface of its Gear Fit 2 in portrait mode, rather than landscape mode. You will then be able to customize the health home screen with several different interfaces; Even if there aren't as many options as there are in the Garmin VivoActive HR Connect IQ store, it's good to see that you can tailor the Gear Fit 2 to your preferences.

The screen turns out to be quite difficult to read in direct sunlight. Even when set to the outdoor fashion (which remains active for only 5 minutes at a time), reading the time in full sun remains complicated. By default, the Fit 2's display is set to turn off after a few seconds (it lights up when you wear your wrist up), but you can adjust it by continuous activation in the Settings menu.

Applications for the Samsung Gear Fit 2

To take advantage of all the possibilities offered by the smart health connected bracelet, you will need to download the Samsung Gear app to pair your smartphone to the bracelet, then the application Samsung S Health, both only available under Android, displease Apple aficionados.

Thanks to the Gear app, you can download additional interfaces for the Gear Fit 2. The selection is much more sparse than theGarmin App Store for its watches, such as the VivoActive HR Garmin for example.

The application also allows you to specify which applications can send notifications Gear Fit 2, as well as the order of the different screens appearing on the bracelet. There is also a function of Find My Gear, in case you lose the bracelet.

On the other hand, the S Health app is functional, but does not shine in appearance. Your various measurements (sleep, stages, etc.) are arranged like rectangular maps, with the possibility of consulting your history of the current day. Selecting one of these maps gives you more information on that data point.

You can select the categories that appear. However, like most fitness apps, this one is pretty drab to look at.

One good thing about S Health is that you can pair it with a ton ofthird-party applications, so you can import all kinds of data, from the glucose meter to the weight and the water intake. Partner applications are sorted by type (nutrition, fitness, rest, health care, in general, and others), but given their number, a search bar wouldn't have been too much. Surprisingly, MapMyFitness and MyFitnessPal are not among the options – major omissions. However, a Samsung representative said the company is exploringother partnerships.

Using the Samsung Gear Fit 2

Designed for people with a fairly active lifestyle, the Gear Fit 2 tracks more than one dozen activities. It can automatically detect when you start running, walking or biking (to name a few), and records these activities as such.

Unlike many other fitness trackers under € 200, the Gear Fit 2 has a built-in GPS, which means it can record where did you go running or cycling, as well as your pace (without requiring you to bring your phone).

The Gear Fit 2 can also provide smartphone notifications, but your responses will be limited as it is not a real smartwatch. Still, the ability to choose which apps can send alerts to the Gear Fit 2 is nice.

Unfortunately for some aficionados of the apple brand, the Samsung bracelet is only compatible with smartphones running on Android 4.4 or later.

Korean brand hopes Gear Fit 2 will help drive usageS Health app, and vice versa. To this end, you will be able to look at other users of the S Health app in your phone's contact list, and invite them to challenges and competitions to see who is taking the longest distance, for example. This challenge functionality is, however, fairly common in all activity tracker applications. You will also be able to share your races on Facebook from the device, functionality to be used moderately to avoid any loss of contact on the social network (Candy Crush players, if you are reading this…)

Music

Apart from GPS, one of the best features of the Fit 2 is its 4 GB internal storage, which you can use to load music to the bracelet. So if you like to keep yourself motivated by the sound of "Eye of the Tiger" while shopping, you won't have to bring your phone or iPod with you. Surprisingly, very few fitness trackers and GPS watches include this feature; only the Spark TomTom Cardio + Music stands out among similar devices.

Also, if the Gear Fit 2 is smart health connected to your phone, you will be able to stream songs from Spotify, Pandora and Milk Music, this one with a pretty cool interface that shows the album covers.

Load your music on the Gear Fit 2 using the Samsung Gear app, they will flow smoothly, without the possibility of having a vision of the progression of the music. You can then change music and adjust volume from your bracelet.

Performance

After Samsung announced that Integrated GPS at Gear Fit 2, we were entitled to be impatient. For racing or cycling enthusiasts, it is an essential element for measuring your pace, speed and distance.

However, exercising with the Samsung bracelet is not as pleasant as expected. If it should be suitable for novices, experienced runners and athletes may not find their account.

Most devices with GPS require you to wait until a signal is acquired. Not the Gear Fit 2. When you start an exercise with the Gear Fit 2, it immediately begins the countdown after three seconds and the timer starts. It is therefore necessary, in order to obtain the most precise result possible, to pause the bracelet and wait for a signal, which is not always fast. Because otherwise, the data on your time or your final distance will be found somewhat inaccurate. A detail for some, a heresy for others.

The other problem comes from this beautiful screen. There is a special outdoor mode which increases the brightness and makes it easy to see, but the screen is not always so. Instead, it wakes up when you turn your wrist to your face, which is not the most convenient thing to do in a race. Add to that a sometimes random response from this system.

Like the Apple Watch, the Gear Fit 2 only displays one category of data per screen and does not allow you to see crucial information during your run. at a glance. Example: to see the distance traveled, you have to swipe the screen once, then slide your finger twice to see your pace. It turns out to be quite frustrating and the operation has become increasingly difficult thanks to perspiration.

Cardiac frequency

A heart rate sensor The optic on the back of the Gear Fit 2 measures your heart rate every 10 minutes throughout the day. These measurements are generally precise compared to the other bracelets serving as a heart rate monitoring. Until the time of physical exercise. Heart rate data is captured at 1 second intervals during training.

This is where these measures are completely revealed random, easily adding beats per minute for free, and displaying higher numbers than other smart health connected bracelets. The Gear Fit 2 is able to sync with the popular Strava running app, but it cannot download heart rate data.

Battery life

Count around two and a half days for the battery with daily use, and a single workout of about 30 minutes using GPS. With the GPS disabled, the Gear Fit 2 will last just over 3 days.

These results are better than the Microsoft 2 bracelet and the Apple Watch, but much worse than similar products from Fitbit and Garmin (like the Fitbit Blaze or the Garmin Forerunner 235). Battery life with an active GPS signal is reported to be around 9 hours, which is actually quite good (an hour longer than the Garmin Vivosmart HR + for example).

Waterproof

You cannot not shower or swim with the Gear Fit 2. It is not completely waterproof: with an IP68 rating, it will work very well in the rain, for washing dishes and during training sessions. Even if you can immerse it in a maximum of 3 feet of water (90 centimeters), it is not recommended to take a shower with (due to varying water pressure levels of different shower heads), although the bracelet is also not likely to stop working if you forget to take it off once.

Samsung Gear Fit 2 against the competition

Obviously, the smart health connected bracelet from Samsung is not a bad product. The relatively short battery life makes him lose points, but the Gear Fit 2 will probably be at the top of the list.

Its design is attractive, as are its well thought-out features (monitoring caffeine and water consumption for example), but there are already other fitness trackers that can do better: the Fitbit Alta or the Fitbit Charge HR to recite nobody else but them.

If GPS functionality is a priority for you, the Garmin Vivoactive HR might convince you, but if the curved design totally appeals to you, maybe the Gear Fit 2 is for you. But you will at least know its limits.

Buy the Samsung Gear Fit 2:

Conclusion

Good points

• Efficient design

• Various functionalities

• Smartphone notifications

Negative points

• Insufficient battery life

• Inaccurate heart monitoring

• Not waterproof

Design & Finishing / Ergonomics – 8

Application – 5

Use / handling – 7

Value for money – 6

6.5

Design & Finishing / Ergonomics : A beautiful curved screen and a nice braceletApplication : S Health app still a bit messyfeatures : A wide range of functionalitiesUse / Getting started : Easy to use and comfortable to wear every dayValue for money : A fair price for a product like this

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