Fitbit Charge 5: Pre-Order Look
Company teases fitness lovers and wannabees with new components, better look.
After a year when the stresses and strain have caused everyone “to become stronger and more resilient,” Fitbit announces its new tool to track “what the mind and body can handle.” It’s Fitbit Charge 5, the company’s “most advanced health and fitness tracker, to help keep a pulse on your fitness, stress, heart health, sleep and overall wellbeing.”
Reviewers are hailing the product’s physical design starting with it being 10% thinner than its predecessor “by miniaturizing its components.” But while Fitbit Charge 5 is thinner, it’s not skimpy on features. The long-awaited full color screen is finally here, allowing easier viewing of heart rate variability (HRV), sleep tracking, and V02 max. A built-in GPS lets users monitor outdoor activities like their bike rides and jogging — and they can do this if they’ve left behind a charging tool, thanks to seven days battery life (depending on use).
Reducing stress is fitness priority
Fitbit indicates its recognition that getting the body in shape is great…but really only works if one’s psyche is calm. As it’s news brief notes: “During 2020, a record-high 40% of adults said they experienced a lot of stress.”
So Fitbit Charge 5 includes features designed specifically to track and help moderate stress levels. The new EDA sensor measures sweat from finger glands; now even tiny changes in sweat indicate stress degrees.
Another indication of how challenging one should make the day can be determined through Fitbit Charge 5’s “Stress Management Score.” As the company indicates, “You can see each morning if you’re mentally ready to take on more challenges, or if you need to recharge.”
Advice on choosing challenges
Of course Fitbit Charge 5 also checks physical stamina. That’s done through the Daily Readiness Score, an algorithm that checks the aforementioned sleep and HRVs, along with previous exertion levels. The lower the score the gentler the physical fitness option the app will offer (like yoga) whereas higher levels propose more challenging workouts.
This actually relates back to what Fitbit introduced in its Charge 4 app: Active Zone Minutes (AZM). That’s “a metric for measuring whether you get the adequate amount of exercise per week.” Now with the Daily Readiness Score that metric will personalize the wearer’s AZM target.
Good looking gets here soon
Besides being thinner, Fitbit Charge 5 offers other physical plusses. Buyers can choose from “lightweight silicone infinity bands, breathable sport bands, plush nylon hook and loop bands. and hand-crafted premium Horween leather bands.” Users can customize clock faces and see everything with an AMOLED display that’s two times brighter than the Charge 4, making it “easy to see…stats on sunny days.”
The August 25 announcement provides a link to Charge 5’s pre-order buy-in, with total availability coming this Fall. It’s price is $180 USD and includes “a six-month Premium membership (for new or returning customers).” Continuing Premium leads to accessing fitness programs that include Daily Burn, LES MILLS, and barre3.
