If you’re just like us and working in a mostly desk-bound job or just leading a generally sedentary lifestyle, then this may be taking a toll on your health. It’s no secret that the health of Malaysians is not exactly the best and sometimes we just need a little reminder that we should stay active so that we can be healthier.
Source: Fitbit
This is where the new Fitbit Charge 3 comes in, which the leading global wearables brand has dubbed as their most advanced tracker yet. It has a ton of awesome health and fitness features on the tracker and is arguably their smartest tracker so far, which can help you understand your body better so you can improve your health. The Charge 3 also has their most advanced sensor technology, which brings the relative SpO2 sensor to the tracker form factor for the first time. How cool is that?
Source: Fitbit MY
The Fitbit Charge 3 was launched on November 8 and I got to try it out for myself. Here are some of the features that I’ve found to be really great in helping me become a healthier person after wearing it for about one month!
1. Enhanced usability that makes wearing the Fitbit Charge 3 a breeze
Source: Fitbit Blog
Since I have never worn a tracker before (and rarely even wear watches), I was pleasantly surprised at how comfortable the Fitbit Charge 3 was. I could barely feel it on my wrist even when I was sleeping because it was so lightweight and thanks to its very intuitive interface, I could access all my stats and information with ease.
Source: Fitbit Blog
Source: WOB
The inductive button is a welcome change to the previous Charge 2’s physical button and its touchscreen also responds really well with every swipe and tap. However, it still has a monochrome surface – that means no fancy colours to customise your tracker’s interface; however, there are really cute animated graphics so it looks way more fun. Since it is so easy to wear, this helps me keep track of my fitness easily!
2. Improved battery life that can last up to 7 days
Source: Fitbit
Source: WOB
There’s nothing more annoying than having to rush to charge your electronics when the battery runs out so I was happy to find out that the Charge 3’s battery life could last up to seven days! Of course, this varies with usage but even when I used it excessively with WhatsApp notifications and more, it could last for more than four days. Besides, it has super fast charging so you don’t have to wait for long before your Charge 3 is good to go and ready to track your body’s fitness levels.
3. Wear it in the swimming pool, ocean and beyond
Source: Fitbit Blog
You’ve always been taught that using electronics with water is a big no-no but with the advancement of technology these days, you can even go diving with some of these. For the Fitbit Charge 3, swimming, bathing or even getting soaked during our tropical rainy weather is totally fine because it’s water-resistant up to 50 metres, which means you can track your water activities too!
4. Get to know your sleeping patterns
Source: WOB
Source: WOB
If you’ve been waking up from your slumber still groggy and feeling lethargic, it might be because you are not sleeping right. Having a good rest is important for good health and the Fitbit Charge 3 helps you keep track of that. You can manually track when you are going to sleep but what amazed me was its ability to automatically track when I was asleep, even for short naps. Plus, it also shows you your different sleep stages, which helps determine the quality of sleep you had.
5. Keep track of your monthly cycle
Source: Fitbit
Source: WOB
For the ladies out there, you’ll be glad to know that you can be prepared when your period is coming and warn your friends and family about shark week in order to understand your female health better. Log in the details of your menstrual cycle in the Fitbit app and it will predict when your next cycle will arrive. Other important details inside include your ovulation period and fertile period. Besides, in the tracker itself, you can swipe up to see a reminder which tells you how many days until your period arrives/ends! If it isn’t accurate the first time, don’t worry, your Fitbit understands you better the longer you wear it.
6. Awesome fitness reminders and insights
Source: WOB
Did you know that you’re burning calories even while you’re asleep? One of the cool features I like about the Charge 3 is the fact that you can check a brief report of your current daily stats without using your phone and with that, I can see things like the number of steps I’ve taken so far, the calories I’ve burnt (even while sleeping), distance I’ve walked and more.
Source: WOB
This helps me keep track of my calorie intake as well since I can see how much I have burned and ensure I won’t overeat. Meanwhile, it also gives me gentle reminders to take 250 steps every hour – this timing can be customised and I set my hourly reminder from 9am to 5pm. The default daily goal is to walk 10,000 steps and it actually isn’t that difficult especially if you walk around a mall (yes, I work next to a mall and *window* shopping is my cardio).
Source: WOB
Besides, keeping track of your daily workout is really important and you can see how many hours you did for the whole week. They also break it down for you by indicating how much time you spent in each heart rate zone such as cardio, fat burn and others. Now you know when you’re burning fat and when you’re not!
7. Cool everyday apps to make your life easier
Source: WOB
If you’re lazy to pull out your phone to check the weather, then just take a few swipes on your Charge 3 to check it easily. The calendar app will also be coming soon so you can always be on top of your appointments. I also synced it to get notifications for calls, texts, and various apps, which is so convenient.
Other than that, I can also pre-select the workout that I’m about to do but even if I forget to do so, the Charge 3 has automatic exercise recognition which is recorded with SmartTrack. Besides that, you can access timers, alarms and for those who are super stressed out, they even have a relaxing, breathing guide for you to chill and find your zen. Being stressed is not good for health!
Source: Fitbit
As a first-time user of Fitbit, I was really surprised by how effortless it was to wear one. It was so lightweight and durable that I don’t even feel it when I’m doing my workouts. There isn’t much to complain about this tracker and since it has so many features, it sometimes feels more like a smartwatch than a tracker. Truly their most advanced tracker so far!
If you’re keen on getting one, here are some deets you might find useful;
Prices: RM728 in black with a graphite aluminum case or blue gray with a rose gold aluminum case. Fitbit Charge 3 Special Edition will be available for RM838. Accessories range from RM128 to RM228.
Where to buy: At all major retailers including All IT Hypermarket, AONE Plus, Best Denki, Harvey Norman, Timekeeper, Thunder Match Technology, and online on Lazada.
Time to get healthy and active, everyone!
Also read: Period-Tracking & 6 Other Features We Love About This New Smartwatch
