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    Fitness bands and smart watches have some similar features: Here's how to choose which to buy

    Synopsis

    If you are confused about which one to opt for, ET Wealth suggests the points to consider while deciding between a fitness band and smart watch.

    ET Bureau
    Fitness bands and smart watches have evolved over the years in terms of design and features.

    If you are confused about which one to opt for, ET Wealth suggests the points to consider while deciding.


    1. The importance of a screen
    There are fitness bands with a screen and without a screen whereas for a smart watch, you will always get a screen. Most fitness bands either come with a monochrome screen that shows current time, battery and your fitness statistics along with basic notifications wherever supported.
    Image article boday

    In comparison, on a smart watch, you get a colour touchscreen which shows your fitness data as well as other information about notifications, weather and not to mention a variety of stylish watchfaces to choose from. Depending on your requirements, you can make the decision on how important is a full touchscreen versus a basic display with just statistics, each has its pros and cons.

    2. The sensors
    Image article boday


    A fitness band comes with two basic sensors— an accelerometer and a gyroscope. Some advanced fitness bands also come with heart rate sensors along with an altimeter. For smart watches, there are additional sensors beside the basic ones. You get ambient light sensor, magnetometer and even IR blaster on some watches. The basic sensors on either device helps measures your fitness data mainly (steps, distance, sleep). If its just fitness you care for, a fitness band will be good enough, but if you want a richer experience, a smart watch is the one to opt for.

    3. Battery woes
    Image article boday


    Battery life is the main concern area for smart watches. Even the best of smart watches struggles to last more than 4 days on a single charge. In comparison, a basic fitness band easily lasts up to 5 days. There are some bands such as the Xiaomi Mi band that lacks a display but gives a battery life of 45 days on one charge. Garmin also has fitness bands with a claimed battery life of 1 year with continuous fitness tracking. As a smart watch offers more features and touchscreen display, battery consumption is higher. When it comes to battery, our vote goes to the fitness bands.


    4. What about the software?
    Image article boday


    Fitness bands usually run a very basic software that shows your current data with numbers. The data is synced wirelessly with a companion smartphone app where you can see the data presented in a graphical format. This means that to fully utilize the functionality, you need to use the fitness band with a smartphone. For smart watches, there are a number of companion and standalone operating systems available. Each offers its own set of features. Depending on your OS, your watch’s functionality can differ in terms of how it computes fitness, displays notifications and lets you install additional apps.


    5. The price factor
    Image article boday


    The last and the most important thing to keep in mind is the price. You can get a basic fitness band for as low as Rs 999 going as high as Rs 20,000. If you don’t want to spend much, stick with the entry level Xiaomi fitness bands and if money is not an issue, then Fitbit Alta HR is what we recommend. When it comes to smart watches, you can get one from Rs 1,499 (with custom OS) and the range goes as high as several lakhs (depends on the variants). Do keep in in mind to check the compatibility of the watch with your existing smartphone.

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