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Fitness Tracker

Fitbit Charge 4 vs Fitbit Charge 5

Fitbit Charge 4

Fitbit Charge 4

150 reviews

View Product Details

Fitbit Charge 5

Fitbit Charge 5

287 reviews

View Product Details

Wirecutter · The Best Smartwatches, Fitness Trackers, and Running Watches for 2021

Wirecutter · The 4 Best Fitness Trackers 2021

Great sleep tracking

Provides all the data of Fitbit's highest end watch

More accurate than cheaper trackers

Two brightness settings, dim and normal

Budget friendly activity tracker

Great design and comfortable to wear

Tracks steps, sleep, and other activities

Decent battery life

Affordable price point

Mindfulness sessions available with premium subscription

Not waterproof

Charging process can be difficult to align correctly

Brightness settings may not be visible in direct sunlight

Not the best choice for runners or outdoor activities due to unreliable GPS connectivity

Premium subscription required to access some features

Battery life could be better

Verdict

The Fitbit Charge 4 is a budget-friendly activity tracker that offers good sleep tracking. It has two brightness settings, dim and normal, which may not be visible in direct sunlight. The device is not waterproof and the charging process can be difficult to align correctly. However, it provides all the data of Fitbit's highest end watch and is more accurate than cheaper trackers.

Verdict

The Fitbit Charge 5 is a great fitness tracker for those looking for an all-around device that can track steps, sleep, and other activities. It has a sleek design and is comfortable to wear. The battery life is decent, but could be better. The GPS connectivity is unreliable, so it may not be the best choice for runners or outdoor activities. However, it's still a great option for tracking your daily activity and monitoring your health.

Reviews by Topic

Our analysis shows how reviewers feel about different topics. Please note these are not full reviews.

Fit

youtube

Fitbit Charge 4 // In-Depth Fitness Review

Let's go over what the charge 4 offers in terms of the smart watch type experience interacting with your phone with the built-in apps on the first scr...

Neutral

youtube

Fitbit Charge 5 review: Why you're MISSING OUT if you're not wearing this smart fitness tracker

Fitbit has basically become a household name in the tracker health monitor field, but the company hasn't been resting on its laurels. They continue to...

Positive

Software Updates

Getting my first Fitbit!

Fitbit Charge 4 is one of the best Fitness trackers in the market. Update the software inside the phone app once received.

Positive

reddit.com/r/fitbit

Grumpy Coach and Salesman included with every purchase!

- the time needed to update and sync between FB5 and app is almost instantaneous when the app is opened and is a great change - no more, "hold, this is taking longer than expected" and sometimes having to restart the process on the FB3

Activity Tracking

I ordered a Fitbit Charge 4, pretty excited. Currently, I'm using a no-name tracker with some Chinese spyware (probably) software.

Positive

reddit.com/r/fitbit

youtube

Fitbit Charge 5 Review - still worth it in 2022?

The while for its price, the Fitbit Charge 5 offers a lot. It won't be the perfect fit for everyone. With limited workout tracking features and a less...

Positive

Connectivity

Battery gone weak Invisible in daylight One clock face Customer service surly Community, apps, gone

I will find another willing helper and set up again to see whether the app will work. In the community help, people had been concerned about the Google take- over and were assured by the company people that it would not affect service and apps, but several people complained that their PC apps no longer worked. Community help is no longer on the web site, and what is described as available on a phone sounds like feel- good messaging and discussions of exercise, as available from the dashboard. I went online to customer service to discuss matters

Good for most common uses but GPS connection is lacking.

Edit: I ended up sending the device back because the GPS is so unreliable. Maybe there's another FItBit model with better GPS connectivity, but this particular one isn't going to work for me.

Price

Returning the Charge 4, Apple Watch is Significantly more accurate... Fitbit more comfortable.

. on an expendable device, including Apple Watch, the price is much better and is just as accurate. I'm very glad Fitbit came out with the Charge 4 and built off their Charge 3 design

youtube

Fitbit Charge 5 In-Depth Review: 9 New Things to Know

And today we've got a complete review of the new FitBit Charge 5, as well as nine new things to know about this unit. Now, I've been using it for a wh...

Neutral

Design

Good fitbit, but not durable.

I wear my FitBit everyday, but am careful not to get it wet. I like the features available and the interface, but the Fitbit itself is not durable and is very poorly designed. Setting it up to charge seems to need a careful dance to ensure alignment of points or else it won't charge and it takes 2-3 attempts to make it happen. We have 2 Fitbits bought at different times and its the same issue with both, I hope that the powers that be will redesign the charger coz this one sucks big time

youtube

Fitbit Charge 5 review

In a world filled with smartwatches, fitness trackers feel kind of liberating. They're smaller, they generally have better battery life, and they're e...

Positive

Durability

I've had a Fitbit Charge 4 for a little over a year and after normal wear and tear, the plastic piece that you snap the band into has broken off. I've contacted Customer Support and they are nothing short of useless just responding with "Thank you for your feedback." It's not covered by warranty and no effort to retain me as a customer with a discount or any other incentive to stay vs. going with a competitor

Negative

reddit.com/r/fitbit

Poor out of box experience, Spo2 issues

One downside is the apparent need to sign up for an expensive membership, but I figured I'd give it a year and let the Fitbit ecosystem prove its value. The trouble started almost immediately when I unboxed the device and went through the initial setup. Total PTSD, from previous attempts to use Fitbit hardware & software. Here, the device kept failing to perform the initial software update

Comfort

It was simple to transition my Fitbit account to this device, and that ease was part of the reason I was willing to accept some other imperfections.

Back to Fitbit… Kind of….

The Fitbit Charge 5 is better in every way except form/fit. As long as you can stand something on your wrist, I highly advise against the Oura ring.

Negative

reddit.com/r/fitbit

Comfortability

GPS is good, special edition band is not...

You are fine with carrying your phone constantly and therefore do not need GPS or 2. you are going to be out doing your activity for 2.5-3+ hours. That's where the battery use for GPS expenditure becomes cumbersome

Fitbit charge 5 or garmin vivo 4 or other (Polar)? Focus on general wellness (F26)

I can comment on the Charge 5 comfort - it's amazing, I have it on 24/7 and don't even know it's there.

Positive

reddit.com/r/fitbit

Battery Life

Happy with my Charge 4, but I wouldn't get the special edition again...

There’s a lot more plastic on the Charge 4, but the addition of Gorilla Glass is a huge improvement. After a year, the screen on my Charge 2 was barely legible until I polished it. I feared that the Charge 4 would take longer to charge, but it charges just as fast, if not faster. Battery life has been excellent so far with the GPS off

Is fitbit dodgy?

Then there's the disgusting battery life which seems to be caused by bad software. 7+ days battery life advertised on the box but it barely gets 24 hours with even with features turned off.

Negative

reddit.com/r/fitbit

Notifications

Motivate and Reminder

The basic operation has served to remind and motivate me to be active. I'm conscious of my eating and physical activity while I'm wearing it. The exercise sensor has mistaken a motorcycle ride for a bike ride. I'm not sure how it figured I was biking at those speeds

Brighter screen, but for me an overall downgrade.

So, when I walked the neighborhood loop to my house, it really is nice when my Charge 4 let me know that I also did the equivalent of about 10 flights of stairs with each loop. Without the altimeter, that information cannot be shown.

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