I have been wearing a Withings Activité (white) for over two months now.
I thought I’d share my thoughts because by reading some reviews before buying I got serious doubts about it.
After just over two months of wearing it non-stop, I have to say I’m really happy with it.
I have had other trackers in the past and it might be informative to compare, as a way of background:
I had two jawbone bracelets in the past, which worked quite well, but not as well as the activité. The activity has not failed to log a single day, or night, unlike the jawbone. Don’t get me wrong, the jawbone was good, so much so that after loosing one during waterspouts I got another one. But would still mis to track a night now and then. I moved on from it mostly because bracelets aren’t really my thing. So when lost second to waterspouts (a second time), decided to move on to the newer option on the market, the Misfit (which if I remember correctly would track tennis, so that was a good feature for me).
The Misfit. Great concept, watch-like with tap for time. Not saying it’s not good, but mine (or with me) it never quite worked very well. Somedays it wouldn’t log, most nights it wouldn’t either. Frustrating, so couldn’t wait to move on to the Activité. ut then it was out of stock…
I waited. It came back on sale, but reviews were mixed; some quite poor.
Decided to try, and I’m happy that I did.
The watch
- The activité hasn’t missed logging a single day or night for two months;
- The set up was easy (and fun moving the hands on the watch by controlling on the phone);
- I believe the measurement is quite accurate by comparing with treadmill;
- Had all sorts of days from computer work at desk to days out at beach, trekking, surfing, swimming, etc;
- While traveling it quickly updates time automatically to new time zone;
- The quick release strap is really useful and works quite well;
- Good quality leather strap;
- Good quality plastic strap. Very pleasant rubbery/siliconish feel.
Watch and app
- Very good app, you can log on loads of information, if you care to use it;
- Works very well with app;
- Often syncs without me explicitly requesting (I hardly ever sync it myself, really);
- When I want to sync it, the app always finds the watch (this was a bit flaky on the jawbone, and a nightmare on the misfit);
“Issues”
- I once noticed it had the wrong time. Yes, not the best thing for a watch to do. I synced with phone, but to no avail. I left it alone. After an hour or so the time was fine.
- When you travel across different timezones, the alarms, still works but at the wrong time. I moved to a timezone where it was two hours late, so my 9 o’clock alarm would “ring” at 11.
I’m not referring to the wake up alarm, but to other ones such as pre-sleep ritual (if that makes any difference. I wasn’t using wake up one at time).
I call these “issues“, as to me the first one was a one off event. So I’m guessing that at worst it will become a rare one.
I have reported the second as a bug.
Most importantly, believe that both issues are fixable through firmware / app update.
The silent alarm is, in my opinion, is one of the best features.
Wish tithings makes replacement straps available on their website (leather and rubbery/siliconish, that come with Activité. Not the ones that come with Pop, as those are already available).
Also, withings isn’t always pestering you to use features that you don’t want to. Though they send the odd email suggesting that you acquire more of their gadgets.
To summarise, very happy with product, hoping for some “minor” firmware polishing.
Notes:
- The comparisons with other products might be unfair in the sense that a few years can matter significantly in the early stages of development of a new category of products. They are presented as some readers might have had these products in the past and therefore can place the comparison in its right place, while understanding the difference in the experience of using.
- At the same time I bought the Activité, I also bought an Activité Pop (as a gift) and that this review could be for both, apart from the wrong time issue reported before, as that was never noticed on the Pop.
Therefore, I’m posting this review on both products. Also, the Pop does not come with leather strap, and plastic strap material on activité is different from plastic strap on Pop.
| Item Package Dimensions L x W x H | 11.18 x 3.31 x 1.34 inches |
|---|---|
| Package Weight | 0.28 Kilograms |
| Item Dimensions LxWxH | 11.65 x 3.35 x 1.26 inches |
| Item Weight | 0.04 Kilograms |
| Brand Name | Withings |
| Warranty Description | Amazon Warranty for Nokia digital health Products is valid for ONE (1) YEAR from the date you initially purchased the Product. Please contact the seller directly if you need a technical assitance. |
| Model Name | HWA01-SIL |
| Color | Silver |
| Material | Other |
| Suggested Users | unisex-adult, mens |
| Number of Items | 100 |
| Manufacturer | Withings Inc - SPORTS |
| Part Number | HWA01-SIL |
| Model Year | 2015 |
| Style | Modern |
| Included Components | Activity Watch |
| Sport Type | All |
| Standing screen display size | 1.3 Inches |
