Fitbit Versa 4 evaluation: Not so sensible now

The Fitbit Versa 4 is the smartwatch successor to the Versa 3, which launched again in 2020 and is the extra reasonably priced path to getting a mixture of Fitbit’s newest health, well being and smartwatch options in a watch design.

For the Versa 4, Fitbit has introduced again the bodily button, ushered in some new apps from proprietor Google, all whereas sticking fairly carefully to what we bought on the Versa 3.

So, does all of it add as much as one of many best smartwatches you can buy right now?

Pricing and competitors

The Fitbit Versa 4 is offered in only one dimension and is available in 4 color choices, with all variations priced at $199.95/£179.99. That is roughly $10/£10 cheaper than choosing up the Versa 3 immediately from Fitbit’s personal web site.

It does make it significantly cheaper than choosing up the Fitbit Sense 2 ($299.95/£269.99) or the Google Pixel Watch ($349/£339), which is powered by Fitbit and Google smarts.

It is also extra reasonably priced than smartwatches just like the Apple Watch SE ($279/£259) whereas a Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 sits at $299.99/£289, so is a pricier purchase too.

Design and show

• Sq. design with rounded corners
• Bodily button returns
• Identical AMOLED display as Versa 3

At first look, the Versa 4 does not look all that completely different from the Versa 3, however there’s one factor that has modified and that is the re-introduction of a bodily button to that lightly curved sq. aluminium watch case. Which means you now not should press the perimeters of the case to shortly enter the primary menu screens or manually get up the show, as you probably did on the Versa 3. Generally buttons are good, and it’s good to see Fitbit has introduced it again.

Elsewhere, it is actually extra of the identical right here as what we bought on the Versa 3. You’ve bought one among Fitbit’s comfy traditional silicone bands that are available in giant and small sizes and might be simply clipped away from the case, with Fitbit providing a spread of different band supplies and appears. You possibly can nonetheless go swimming with it because it carries a 5ATM (as much as 50 metres depth) water-proof score, however nonetheless solely helps pool swim monitoring.

There is a 40mm AMOLED show as soon as once more that may be set to remain at all times on if you happen to do not wish to use the raise-to-wake gesture help, however it’s properly responsive whenever you do. Whereas it isn’t the perfect in school AMOLED show, it is nonetheless very clear, vibrant and has these good, deep blacks you affiliate with an AMOLED display. Visibility has been good indoors and open air and positively excels whenever you’re glancing down at it indoors.

If you happen to care about colors, it is available in graphite, platinum or copper rose-coloured aluminium circumstances. The graphite model with black strap we needed to evaluation positively feels essentially the most understated choice to go for, however you do have some good color choices right here with scope to combine up these band appears and make the Versa 4 really feel a bit extra distinctive and trendy.

Options

• Constructed-in GPS
• Google Maps and Google Pockets
• Step, sleep and coronary heart price monitoring
• Alexa and Bluetooth calls

The Versa 4 offers you most of the options you will discover on the Sense 2, simply with among the greater health-focused choices omitted, and in addition grabs some smartwatch smarts from the Google Pixel Watch, which could be very a lot thought-about a part of the Fitbit household.

The large ones are arguably centred across the additions from Google with Google Maps and Google Pockets now preloaded, and aren’t obtainable on the Versa 3. You do nonetheless get Fitbit Pay right here, however the Fitbit AppGallery has in any other case been vastly scaled again with a variety of third social gathering apps now gone. There are nonetheless an array of watch faces to obtain although.

On the well being and health monitoring entrance, you do nonetheless have built-in GPS to trace out of doors train whereas onboard movement sensors can monitor each day step counts, allow sleep monitoring and higher monitor indoor actions like pool swimming.

You’ve bought Fitbit’s PurePulse optical coronary heart price sensor expertise to trace coronary heart price exercise through the day and evening and through train, whereas that sensor additionally helps energy metrics like Energetic Zone Minutes and Cardio Health Scores for people who take that train time just a little extra severely. It may also be used to arrange irregular coronary heart price rhythms notifications, which implies the Versa 4 does nonetheless have a contact of great health-tracking edge to it.

There’s a pores and skin temperature sensor and blood oxygen monitoring supported right here too, to ship extra metrics that may provide basic wellness insights, although aren’t designed for medical use.

Health and smartwatch efficiency

• Nonetheless a greater health tracker than sports activities watch
• Third social gathering apps and music help disappear
• Fitbit Premium wanted for some metrics

If you happen to’re wanting on the Versa 4 from a smartwatch perspective, properly, issues have modified on that entrance fairly drastically because the Versa 3.

You continue to have someplace you may view your notifications in a fairly simplistic style, entry the gorgeous helpful Amazon Alexa integration and make calls over Bluetooth if that is your factor. What you may’t do is use it to regulate music enjoying in your telephone or add audio to it both. As talked about, the Fitbit AppGallery has been stripped again too, so the one high-profile apps obtainable are from Google.

By way of these Google apps, you’ve bought Google Maps, Pockets, however oddly no Google Assistant, which did seem on the Versa 3. The Google Maps help requires you to obtain the devoted app, then arrange the help inside the Fitbit companion app in your telephone, which primarily grants the watch entry to Google Maps there.

This implies the expertise of utilizing it’s fairly primary and mirrored out of your telephone, that means it does not actually provide something new, other than the comfort of getting it in your wrist.

The expertise of utilizing FitbitOS on the watch is ok, however feels a contact laggy in locations when swiping by screens. The added button means there’s now a faster strategy to get by to settings and your apps, whereas widgets to point out off monitoring stats and parts like climate are properly optimised too. It does really feel a tad disjointed in comparison with some working methods although, together with WearOS, which is what the Google Pixel Watch is after all packing.

For health monitoring, the Versa 4 nonetheless appears like a greater match for doing issues like monitoring steps, monitoring coronary heart price through the day and reliably monitoring your sleep at evening, fairly than something extra in depth. The sports-tracking options merely aren’t on par with what you will get on an Apple Watch or Samsung Galaxy Watch, whether or not that is the extent of metrics, accuracy over longer durations of train, or feeling like one thing you’d wish to use exterior of a fast jog or dip within the pool.

Constructed-in GPS does not match as much as the efficiency of a equally priced Garmin working watch, whereas heart-rate accuracy was fairly far off a heart-rate monitor chest strap for extra high-intensity train time.

Shifting the main focus to the Versa 4’s wellness and well being options and also you aren’t getting the ECG sensor or EDA sensor included on the Sense 2 for deeper insights into your coronary heart well being and skill to deal with stress. You do get guided respiration workout routines to comply with and the power to log stress scores based mostly on sleep knowledge, train historical past and coronary heart price. You even have these irregular coronary heart price rhythm notifications as properly, which fortunately I wasn’t notified of at any time throughout testing.

For essentially the most detailed view of your knowledge you do should be signed as much as Fitbit Premium, which prices simply shy of $100/£100 a yr or $9.99/£7.99 a month, to have the ability to do issues like see deeper stress analytics, have the power to detect loud night breathing throughout bedtime and entry the Day by day Readiness rating for people who need a greater thought of when to train or take a relaxation day.

So far as how helpful the stress options are, I would say like a variety of Fitbit’s software program options, it makes checking in on stress a quite simple factor to do. It is also pushed by knowledge that’s reliably tracked on the entire, so in all probability not a nasty indication of the way you’re doing in that division.

Battery life

• 6+ days battery life
• In the future battery from 12-minute cost
• 3 days in always-on show mode

In contrast to an Apple Watch or a Samsung Galaxy Watch, the Fitbit Versa has excellent endurance for a smartwatch. It won’t provide Huawei Watch ranges of stamina, however it has the power to final every week between costs, which is not the case for lots of prime flight smartwatches.

I discovered that I may get every week so long as I wasn’t utilizing the display set to always-on. While you try this, the battery life drops beneath three days. That’s nonetheless displaying although. This will even depend upon how often you employ options like GPS, as a result of that may drain the battery a lot faster in comparison with the continual monitoring of metrics like coronary heart price, which appears to be performed in a extra environment friendly method.

While you do get low on juice, Fitbit features a helpful fast-charging characteristic that provides you with sufficient battery for a day’s value of monitoring by spending 12 minutes on the charging cradle – precisely the identical one used on the Versa 3.

Verdict

The Fitbit Versa 4 does nonetheless really feel like the perfect Fitbit health monitoring watch, although its skills on the smartwatch entrance have been notably scaled again in comparison with the Versa 3.

It is nonetheless nice for monitoring each day exercise and sleep ,and the step into basic wellness and stress monitoring are particular positives, together with delivering one thing that is comfy, customisable and presents good battery life.

If you happen to can afford to spend a bit extra money on one thing just like the Apple Watch SE or the Samsung Galaxy Watch, these smartwatches provides you with a significantly better stability by way of sports activities, well being and smartwatch options. You may have to sacrifice battery in return, however in the end it is laborious to see what the longer term holds for the Versa 4 as a smartwatch when the Pixel Watch is grabbing the larger options, and seems to carry extra focus for Google than Fitbit’s personal smartwatches.