I have a pipe dream , a dream about the perfect piece of wearable technical school . It would be a band with all the simple notification power ofthe best smartwatchesand all the wellness tracking powers of a full - on physical fitness tracker . The Fitbit Surge is so near that it hurts .
What Is It?
The most premium tracker in Fitbit ’s 3 of new fitness trackers , with more features than the Charge and the Charge HR . But not many more . The Fitbit Surge is basicallythe Charge HR , but with a bigger screen , text substance notifications , and consecrate GPS on top . Oh , and it costs an additional $ 100 .
Fitbit Charge HR Review : This Is The One You require
I ’ll touch on the canonic features of the Surge — like heart - rate tracking , step counting , and such — but for a more in - depth face , you’re able to ( and should)go show this review of the Charge hour by my pal Brent Rose first . It is probably the one you should buy anyhow . I ’ll spend most of my time focusing on what make the Surge dissimilar , which is principally how it works as a ( crack duper vestigial ) smartwatch , and how it can track run without a phone in your scoop .
Design
Unlike the onetime ( recalled ) Fitbit Force andthe newfangled Fitbit Charge and Charge HR , the Fitbit Surge has a full - fledge square screen rather of the iconic little strip on its first cousin . The body is a mostly routine grey credit card , flank by a black rubber stripe . It looks like one of the modest Fitbits grew up into a smartwatch , in other words . ( If only that were dead on target . )
The Surge ’s fount is a monochrome LCD touch screen , sort of like if you took a Pebble and made it contact - sensitive . And while you ’ll swipe around for most things — from the watchface to your current heart rate to your current footmark reckoning — it also has button . There ’s one on the right that basically switches the Surge from output fashion — “ I wanna see my stats ” — to input mode—”I wanna originate cover an exercise ” — and back . There are two more on the rightfield which mostly get used for starting and stopping timer , and for pulling up recent notification if you have any .
On the inside is where you ’ll find the Surge ’s always - on heart - rate reminder : a low photographic camera flank by two green LEDs that do a little gaudy freakout for a sec every sentence you take the affair off . They ’re mounted on a legato little excrescence so they can easy maintain skin physical contact without having you tighten up the strap like a tourniquet . Seems to work ! The Fitbit Surge is plenty comfortable , even if the rubber strap can at times feel a little suffocating as reasonably much all rubber strap do .
Using It
As a fitness tracker — which is to saythe part where it is basically just a direction HR — the Surge is a damn dreaming . Setup is as simple as signing into the app and pairing with your speech sound via Bluetooth . reasonably much everything from that tip on is automatic . The Surge — like the Charge 60 minutes — pass over your heartbeat all the time , as well as tracking your steps , the telephone number of flights of stairs you ’ve walked up , distance walk , and an idea of your calories burned ( based on some data you give the app about your weight and height and sex and age and hopes and dream and deep darkest secret and whatnot ) . Also like the Charge HR , the Surge does quietus - tracking and does it mechanically ; you do n’t have to do a thing besides learn how to catch some Z’s with a watch on .
I did some fundamental examination to see if the Surge ’s heart - pace tracker and pedometer features areas precise as the Charge HR . trusted seems so ! We ’re spill the beans discrepancies of rough a beat or two per minute and maybe 5 - 10 steps every thousand .
I did have a few periodic issue with the nitty-gritty - pace trailing , though . When I did a rarefied bout of real exercising in my aliveness way ( Dance Central Spotlight ! ) , the sentinel occasionally lost rail of my pith - rate when I was up in the 140 BPM range . Not sure if it has anything to do with catch into the high heart - rate area , or with me swinging around my arm like an imbecile — which Fitbit warns against . My heart - rate always came back after a few minute , but it was momently annoying to appear down and ensure my BPM only to see it was n’t there . When perusing my wellness data , I also discover an inexplicable 137 BPM ear at 1:30 AM on a Monday night when I was in layer , and since I do n’t remember induce a incubus or a heart fire , I have to assume it was a fluke .
The Fitbit app , as brant cite , has catapulted itself into the lead when it comes to coherently and plainly showing you all the health data you ’ve been hoard . The app ’s nonremittal CRT screen is just this magnificent dashboard of data that ’s all clear and easy accessible . It ’s great .
That ’s all stuff that the ( $ 100 cheaper ) Charge hour does . Sure , the Surge does it all equally well . But what about the bonuses ?
Well , if you are ask the Surge to dish as a smartwatch of any grade insignia , break it . ( Stop it right now . ) The Surge can institutionalise call notification and SMS apprisal to your phone , and … that ’s it . Let me echo that : If you geminate your headphone with the Surge over Bluetooth , the only thing you get that you ca n’t get with the Charge 60 minutes are copy of your incoming text messages . The main affair those notifications notified me of was that world , I hardly ever text with anyone . If the Surge offer e-mail notification , mayhap I ’d be intrigued . Maybe .
But as is , you may look at your last ( and only your last ) incoming text or call notification , it ’s annoying to get to , and it takes up the whole screen :
Of course there ’s the opening that Fitbit will update the Surge with more powers later , but for now it feels pretty obtuse . in particular ’cause the Basis Peak ( ourcurrent choice for estimable overall seaworthiness tracker ) just got update with full presentment funding — mirror just about anything that pop up on your sound .
The Surge ’s heavy touch screen does make it more convenient to apply as a lookout man — more elbow room on a big concealment for the time , and like a Pebble , you’re able to select from a few unlike watchface options using the companion app . The touchscreen controls are kind of unearthly in combining with the buttons . Pressing the button on the rightfield , for representative , switches the watch between a mode where you could see the time verses one where you could start timed activity tracking . This substitution has an living that calculate just like a vertical screen - swipe , but a vertical screen swipe really does nothing ; you have to practice the button . Meanwhile , you have to hook to the left or good to switch between the alternative in either mode . It ’s a bit of a uncanny mishmash .
Also moderately annoying is how easy it is to abstract the projection screen by accident , particularly when you ’re sleep with the thing on . I ’ve turn my radiocarpal joint to check the clock time in the wee 60 minutes of the dayspring , only to retrieve my watch gleefully displaying the number of flights of stairs I walk the former sidereal day . This happen four time in as many night . It ’d be nice if those alternative views timed out and went back to exhibit the time after a minute or ten , but nope .
The big bonus you get out of that large fat touchscreen is the option to initiate all kind of different physical exercise selection right from the lookout . you’re able to load up to seven cutoff onto the scout — things like tramp or yoga or kick - packing or tennis or martial artistic creation . Each one of these will automatically start a stopwatch - like round of inwardness - rate tracking , and also the GPS if it makes sense ( yes , for hike , no for yoga ) . Most of the prison term , it does n’t change the way the Surge in reality tracks your activity — yoga , tennis , martial artistic production and many more only use heart - rate — but at least when you go back to the app you ’ll be able-bodied to remember what you were doing when your ticker dispatch its pace .
When you use the GPS , the Surge can take a little prison term to lock - on to a satellite . I take a stroll through Manhattan ( and lied to my wrist joint about it being a “ tally ” ) and it look at a solid 5 minutes before the GPS locked in . Out in the boonies , though ( record : Queens ) lock - on was almost instant . In the event it ’s taking forever , there ’s an option to just bypass the waiting game and get your workout started before GPS locks on , and if you do that you ’ll get the heart and soul - rate and space for your run ( or perambulation ) in full , but the row wo n’t be map until the Global Positioning System lock on and the Surge vibrates to let you know it ’s all quick .
Like
The Surge is a great physical fitness tracker and silent simpleton . I just slap it on and synced it up and blast instant life stats . The app is fantastic at share the info with you .
Auto - sleep tracking is clutch .
barrage fire living seems great ; have n’t had long enough ( i.e. an continuous workweek ) to do a full - to - empty trial yet , but I ’ll update when I have . So far though , I mother four whole days out of a one-half cathexis and over 24 hours of trailing after the first monition of “ low barrage . ”
No Like
The Surge is prostrate to accidental swipe ( especially during sleep ) and never defaults back to the meter until you do it yourself ; I hate when my sentinel - type accessory fails to meet the most basic criteria of a watch .
The Surge is water - resistive but not lavish or swimming - proof . Hmm .
$ 250 is a loooot considering that the Charge HR is $ 150 and does most of the same thing .
It produce me actualise that all I really want is a Pebble plus a Fitbit , and while the Surge seems like it could have been that in some substitute creation , it is not actually that thing .
Should You Buy It
No . Not unless running without your phone but still having GPS track your course is of the furthermost grandness to you . The Surge is a slap-up seaworthiness tracker , but it ’s also $ 100 more thanthe heraldic bearing hour , and unless you have that very specific demand , it is not $ 100 better .
The SMS notifications are nice or whatever , but they ’re hardly enough to move the needle . Even if Fitbit updates the Surge with more telling powers in the futurity , it ’s going to need a huge inspection and repair before the interface — which is fine when you ’re just getting texts — can handle more ( and more diverse ) notifications .
The dream of a Fitbit Surge that is actually just a Pebble but with bad - ass seaworthiness additions is taunt . The Fitbit Surge ( which is n’t that ) whet my appetite for it more than ever . The Basis Peak — our current pick for best overall fitness tracker which is also only $ 200 — might be ; it just got update with presentment and we ’re currently checking that out , so your best bet is to sit tight for just a check . But if articulatio radiocarpea notice are n’t your suitcase and you are n’t some form of phone - complimentary running game junky , the Fitbit Charge HRis just as good and cheaper than the Fitbit Surge , and you should get that one alternatively .
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