I don’t know about you, but I like new gadgets a lot, and I like them even more when they can seamlessly communicate with my phone. One of the latest of these gadgets is the Fitbit Flex. It’s a bracelet that you are supposed to wear at all times and it monitors your activity. The gadget came out back in May of last year, but it hasn’t seen a lot of attention, and I think that’s too bad – it’s a pretty nifty gadget and I would love to see it used more.
The Fitbit Flex is made up of two parts: an USB device that’s basically the whole “brains” of the gadget and the wristband, a rubber band that keeps the device safe from shocks, rain or even underwater. This wristband comes in three colors: pink, blue and black, and two sizes – large, and small, making for a nice customization level. Once you have the band locked in just the way you want it, pop the USB device in and you’re ready to go.
So, once you have the band in place and the USB device charged and inserted you wear it on you throughout the day and it records a lot of details about what you’re doing. First off, the amount of steps you’re making. I know there are many apps that allow you to do this on your phone as well, but there are times when I don’t have my phone with me, so the small bracelet acting as a pedometer is a nice touch. It will also record the distance you travel in a day and the number of minutes you’ve been active – you always see advice saying that “you should do physical activity for at least 30 minutes every day”, but until now there has been no way for you to actually track these stats.
And the most fun is being able to track all of this with your phone! In the App Store here’s the Fitbit app which you can download for free – makes sense, you already paid for the device – and it will show you all the stats that you have accumulated. Here’s an example of how these stats are displayed on your iPhone:
So if you want a no-nonsense device that will show you personalized information about your movement, Fitbit’s Flex is probably the right call. At just over $100, it’s not too pricey, either, so it’s worth taking a look into.