Everybody should have a Smartwatch
I've had a busy month. I've been running, cycling, swimming, rowing and hiking. And I've done all of this while wearing a single watch, Garmin's Vivoactive HR. Unlike many of Garmin's other products, the watch won't appeal to just athletes. It's an everyday fitness band, but with smartwatch elements. It gives Fitbit a run for its everyday-fitness money and is a compelling solution for anyone with an active lifestyle.
The Vivoactive HR seems to be able to do it all. There's all-day activity tracking (for things like steps, floors climbed, calories burned and sleep), smartphone notifications from your iPhone or Android device, a built-in optical heart-rate sensor and GPS for tracking a variety of activities. In addition to the ones I mentioned above, the watch can track golf, downhill and cross-country skiing, indoor cycling, indoor rowing, walking, strength training and even paddle boarding.
Even more impressive is that it can do all of this without having to be charged each night. The watch will last up to eight days, or around 13 hours with an active GPS signal. I typically got about a week, but that included five days of GPS workouts of between 40 and 50 minutes.
It's pretty clear that I'm a fan of the Vivoactive HR. It's a watch that active consumers will really enjoy and the pricetag is pretty reasonable (given all it does), but there a few things you need to know before you go out and buy one.
It's not all bad, though. The Vivoactive HR is waterproof up to 50 meters. It also has an always-on display, which is easy to read outdoors, but can look a little dull when inside.I really liked the slim design of the original Vivoactive, but the HR model is nothing like the original. It's similar to the Fitbit Surge, but that's not necessarily a good thing. The watch is big and bulky, and it's not something you would want to wear to the office, let alone a wedding.
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