The Withings Pulse Ox, new name for Pulse O2

Connected health and measurement devices are developing more and more, as the technical capabilities of smartphones, sensors and also Bluetooth communications improve. There are now many models of sensors like Withings Pulse related to fitness and health, intended to measure, among other things, physical activity and sleep.

Today, it is the small Pulse sensor that we switch to review: it measures steps, height difference, sleep and heart rate. It is offered by the French company Withings, to whom we owe many other products connected such as the connected scale or a blood pressure monitor and others

Two new features for the Withings Pulse O2

In addition to the new name, Withings also announced that users no longer need to deactivate night mode in the morning (beforehand, you had to activate and deactivate it manually, which is not always easy in the morning when you are still in the clouds), a news that is likely to please more than one! Another small novelty, the Pulse Ox smart health connected bracelet can now automatically detect your time zone and therefore adapts the time accordingly. Convenient when you’re on the go!

The Pulse has been in my pocket during the day and on my arm at night for over a month now. Now is the time to give you a review of details, photos and conclusions:

First contact

The sensor comes with a sticker that takes the design of the screen on.

Once removed, the sensor appears as a small matt black rectangle with rounded contours. We only distinguish a simple small button and a micro USB socket for recharging. A very small USB cable is provided. It is used with the iPhone transformer or any transformer USB as well as with a computer socket.

Small thing to note, the cable if it is mini has the particularity of being rigid, as a result, it allows the sensor to be positioned in an upright position during recharging, original and well thought out.

Other accessories provided: an armband that will be used for the night, we will come back to this later, and a belt clip in which to slide the Pulse.

The sensor is very light since it weighs only 9 grams (of technology and battery), which means that it is quickly forgotten in the back of the pocket or even hung with its clip.

Charging the sensor is fast, it lasts less than an hour and after …

Plan once again to forget the charger since the autonomy is announced at… 10 days (not hours, eh! We are not used to our smartphones .., but they are many days!) And… It is indeed, a recharge ensures 10 days of uninterrupted operation, day and night,

besides there is no stop button!

On the back, small contacts appear next to what turns out to be a light diode, all of which are used to measure heart rate.

The startup brings up a screen with a blue pixel display with a rather retro design. It appears a little blurry in the photos, they are not the ones that are blurry, but the matte aspect gives this display slightly

diffuse.

Pressing the button scrolls through the various information: steps, running time, elevation, distance traveled, calories burned and finally activation of night mode and heart rate measurement. The screen is also tactile, which allows you to walk around the displayed indications and

to validate, in addition to pressing the button.

Counting steps and physical activity

The Pulse is made to be worn at all times, which is how it will be able to count the steps and deduce the distance traveled, the duration of the race or more intense activity, as well as the altitude difference.

You can put it in your pocket or on your belt. The supplied clip, in black rubber, allows it to be slipped inside, this is done effortlessly and the sensor remains perfectly maintained. The clip that attaches to the belt but also to the collar or to a shirt pocket appeared to be really tight and rather resistant to tearing. This is how I wore it the vast majority of the time and it never came off.

Still, to be sure not to lose the sensor, the best is in the pocket, with or without its protection. Be careful, it is quickly forgotten with its featherweight and if it is advertised as water resistant, it is well indicated

that it is not machine washable so beware.

In use, the sensor is above all there to detect and count the steps and it effectively does so whether the pulse is in the hand, in the pocket or on the belt. I tried to count at the same time to see the accuracy and without being perfect, I would say the overall count was pretty good.

Anyway, the principle of this kind of sensor is not really related to the absolute value but rather in my opinion intended to see the variation over time of physical activity, in particular for those who are too sedentary ( like in front of a screen all day, I won’t name anyone!). Also tested during Badminton training, steps are counted, is it all? unfortunately impossible to say.

The other measurements result from the counting of steps: the distance covered and the number of calories while the sensor also displays the altitude difference.

ore surprises in the coming weeks, we can’t wait to find out.

If the Pulse O2 is now called the Pulse Ox, the fact remains that our Review is still valid.

The calculated distance is very approximate since it is a function of the number of steps, each step being in my case evaluated at about 80 cm (without my having indicated this value) for walking. We don’t really know where this 81 cm comes out, is it linked to the size entered in the application? Or

an average value for everyone?

The sensor is also designed to distinguish the phases of race and count the number of corresponding steps and the duration of this more intense activity. The test compared with a GPS gives big differences in distance (overestimated by about 25%, in connection with the stride lengths probably too long) but an assessment of the altitude difference surprisingly close. Of course, GPS also has its weaknesses, but again, this type of pedometer, like the others on the market can only guess a step length and therefore correctly estimate distances, we must therefore be satisfied with relative comparisons and prefer a GPS integrated into the iPhone to have more reliable values ​​in absolute terms.

It is very appreciable to be able to consult the number of steps taken directly on the screen, no need for an app to launch and connect, everything is done completely autonomously: measurement and consultation. In addition, it is even possible by sliding your finger on the screen to consult the measurements

of the last ten days. However, outdoors, we notice difficulty in reading the screen when viewed in the sun.

Note, facing some competitors, here no use possible for other activities such as cycling or swimming .

The device can store 10 days of data, but it is not of course in a hurry to see the details of physical activity and sleep and for this, an iPhone application (but also Android) is planned.

Once installed, as long as the Bluetooth is on and the app is paired for the first time, be aware that the module will regularly transfer its data, without you realizing it during the day. But it is also possible to start synchronization manually by pressing the Pulse button for 2 seconds. If the app is not in

running in the background, a message on the iPhone screen indicates that it should be launched.

Then, the new data is transferred and available in the application, but also on the withings website, all protected by a password created during the first launch.

As for the step counting, it should be noted that both the application and the sensor are set with a target of 10,000 steps per day. This is good, it is even very ambitious for those who do not go to work on foot, for example. So we

would prefer to be able to choose your goal to make it more personalized, even if it means raising it as you progress.

As for the autonomy, it is simply excellent. A charge of one hour provides ten days of permanent operation, which is to say an eternity as we are used to more frequent recharges.

With our iPhones. The device warns via an alert on the iPhone when the level drops, around 25%. I once had a loss of battery (you quickly get used to autonomy …) and unfortunately I lost the unsynchronized data, there is no “permanent” memory, but the autonomy is more than enough not to complain about this, it is enough

to take the few minutes necessary for recharging, for example once a week. .

Heart rate measurement

The Pulse has specific components to measure its heart rate. One more piece of data that will be transmitted and stored in the application. The measurement is made by placing your finger on the back of the case, where the lights come on. It is these lights that allow the Pulse to detect changes in the color of the finger related to the flow of blood.

Once the finger is placed, the measurement takes about fifteen seconds, as long as everything goes well. Indeed, the measures sometimes appeared capricious. In the dark or a gloomy ambience this worked perfectly well as many failures were noted in the light ambient. There is also no indicator to validate that the measurement is in progress in a correct way, but waiting a few seconds to have a failure is frustrating. Remember, a measurement with weak light is largely preferable or by hiding with the hand.

As for the values, they seemed correct, but to be sure, I compared with a heart rate monitor and the result is close without being identical: example 55 with the pulse sensor against 52 with the belt. As both have a margin of error, it can be considered that there is little deviation and the measurement was reproducible.

What about sleep?

But the Pulse doesn’t just accompany its user during the day, it is also there at night. Thus, it slips into a supplied armband and perfectly adjusted to accommodate it. This is wrapped around the arm and closed with a velcro. Then, you have to start the night mode with the button and a slide on the screen. The sensor will then monitor the movements to determine whether the user is still awake, in light or deep sleep. The next morning, you must stop the night mode and after synchronization, the information is available in the application,

synchronized at the same time as the steps or the heart rate measurement.

In use, we note that the application seems to take measures, in general detects the phases of awakening (except once when a big insomnia, with getting up, has gone completely through for an unknown reason) with

precision. For the rest, there are phases of light and deep sleep, but it is impossible for me to know if this corresponds to reality.

However, the interest is not only there, indeed, the application thanks to the information is able to give precisely the amount of sleep.

In terms of negative points, we note that the sleep phase is in my case between 14 and 16 minutes every day, I tend to think that this is not as regular, but in principle, in the phase of falling asleep we try not to move, so how could a motion sensor really distinguish the two phases with precision, it seems tricky.

For the rest, wearing an armband could bother those who are light sleepers for several reasons: first of all, it is a fabric that must be worn around the wrist, it is not natural (what is it will give in summer) and the scratch quickly showed signs of weakness in terms of grip. In a good month, it has only come off two or three times, but

it interferes with sleep (except heavy sleeper, who may not need this tool!). We could perhaps solve the problem by being able to put the armband on a T-shirt higher on the arm (such as running armbands) and by having stronger scratches. Information taken from of two other users, after 6 months (first buyers!), they don’t have to worry about the cuff coming loose, so … It’s hard to conclude on this point.

Otherwise, we regret the difficulty in handling the touch screen when the sensor is in the cuff, the fabric prevents proper setting in night mode and its exit. Nothing prohibitive, but it is to be noted.

Lastly, the “sleep” duration can be displayed at night with a push of the button, but what I would have preferred to see is what time it is. It is indicated, but on a smaller scale, the reverse would be preferable.

Application, sites and other aspects

Beyond the operation of the pulse itself, it should be noted that it is part of a real ecosystem. This is the application available on iPhone but also on Android. It has a lot of information and details,

offers advice and monitoring of daily and weekly data.

Very pleasant to use, customizable, it manages synchronization transparently and independently with the module.

Better still, it is also synchronized with the Withings servers which store the data on your free account. These are accessible from any Internet browser. There are even more details and analysis functions only on the application.

Withings’ various products: blood pressure monitor but also connected scale allow you to complete the data measured with the Pulse and everything is integrated in the same application and the same Internet profile. otherwise other third-party connected products (runkeeper for example) are also compatible with the hub thus created.

Finally, the system manages “badges”, rewards for the kilometers traveled, for the difference in altitude and other overtaking. These, original and cool, are sent automatically by email and reward our efforts. Pretty cool and they arrive after a sync that we haven’t even seen done, in a completely transparent way, they are all the more surprising.

Here is a video that shows the manual synchronization of the sensor, knowing that this synchronization is also performed automatically and transparently by the module from time to time (there is then no display on the iPhone):

We can not end without mentioning the possibility of buying clips additional belts in tangy colors. they have

exactly the same quality as that supplied with the Pulse.

Conclusion

In use, the Pulse sensor, light and mini, knows how to be forgotten, at the bottom of a pocket or on the belt, it does its work and counts the steps tirelessly, it also responds present at night and all this with a ridiculous consumption. The presence of the touch screen and information available at all times as well as the automatic synchronization make it a practical everyday accessory.

All of this offers measurements of good quality overall without being perfect but which make it possible to properly assess trends, compare periods and correct discrepancies whether in sleep time or

the activity. As far as I’m concerned, this has indeed enabled me to motivate myself in terms of daily activity, but also to lengthen my sleep time a little, thanks to the awareness triggered by the measurements.

Where to buy Pulse O2?

Do you want to buy the Pulse O2 bracelet? Below, find the best current prices.

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