21 February 2023
Olivia | Author
FITNESS
Fitbit Sense 2 Review
Last year we reviewed the Fitbit Sense. And the results were very positive. So, when the Fitbit Sense 2 showed up at my door to review, I had high expectations and let me just say, they didn’t disappoint.
Whether you’re looking to buy a smartwatch for yourself or a loved one, or you just want to upgrade, this review has everything you need to know. Much like all our other reviews, you can expect an honest and detailed review. And, by the end of this you’ll either want to buy one or you’ll feel inspired – I’ll take either one as a win.
The Fitbit Sense 2 can help you learn to manage stress, sleep better, work out smarter, and tune in to your body. Plus, you can get so many apps that you love on your wrist, including Google wallet, maps and more.
So, whether it’s a new year’s resolution, getting fit for spring or achieving the summer body of your dreams, the Fitbit Sense 2 can help you on your wellness journey.
Fitbit Sense 2
Understanding Stress
Everyone has their own way of managing and reducing stress. Whether you go for walks. Run. Watch movies. Cook. Bake. The list is endless. With the Fitbit Sense 2, you can manage and understand your stress. It also has an EDA Scan feature. EDA stands for electrodermal activity, which basically means it measures any changes in sweat level. So, when you’re stressed, you can scan your body for changes in sweat and heart rate, letting you understand and manage your stress. With all-day body response tracking and smart notifications to log your mood and reflect your emotions, you can identify patterns of stress. And, for when stressful moments become, well, too stressful, this health smartwatch has guided breathing, meditations and more. I found these features so useful in times of stress. And because I’m quite an anxious person, taking a moment to unwind and focus on your breathing does more than you realise.
One thing I will say I found disappointing was that to unlock mindfulness to its full potential, you must have a premium subscription. Whether it was a meditation I wanted to do, or a yoga flow, I couldn’t without premium. Now, for some people, this may not be an issue. After all, you can do Yoga on YouTube, or you may have your own gym subscription that offers mindful exercises. And you can log these as you do them (we’ll come more to exercise soon), but if you want the Fitbit in its full potential, that’s something you’ll have to consider.
Sleep Soundly
With the Fitbit Sense 2, you can recognise sleep patterns, gain a sleep score, and build an overall sleep profile. All you need to do is wear the smart watch overnight and in the morning. When you wake up, your sleep analysis will be ready for you. You’ve got to sleep with the Fitbit on for at least 3 nights to begin with to allow it to gain a basic understanding of your sleep profile. But the more you wear it during the nights, the more beneficial it’ll become. It can understand your time in light, deep and REM sleep. It’ll tell you how restful or restless your sleep was. Your skin temperature. And your daily score.
I love my sleep and am always so curious about it. I literally calculate what time I’m about to go to sleep and what time I’ll wake up and figure out (hope) that I get my 8 hours. It’s vital for my everyday functioning. My sleep score was always between 80 and 85 and I always slept more than 8 hours. But sleep score isn’t based on how long you sleep for. To improve your sleep score, you should exercise earlier in the day, maintain a consistent sleep schedule, and more. Working on your overall sleep habits, heart health and activity levels. An extra side note, the Fitbit has a Do Not Disturb mode, so you don’t have to worry about being disturbed in the night.
Tune into your body
The Sense 2 has plenty of features to keep you in tune with your body. The Health Metrics dashboard means you’re able to see your heart rate variability, skin temperature, and Sp02 and more. There’s also the ECG app, which means you’re able to take an atrial fibrillation assessment and share the results with your doctor if you’re concerned for any reason. I just took the assessment and safe to say the results were all clear. If you are wanting to keep an eye on your heart rate because you’re worried, or just want to keep an eye on it, you can turn on irregular heart rhythm notifications to access your heart while you’re still or sleeping. It also measures your heart rate throughout the day so it can understand your resting heart rate (mines 67bpm, normal, nothing to be concerned about).
Talking of health. If you’re a woman, like myself, or are thinking of getting this Fitbit for your sister, wife, girlfriend, aunt, or any female friend. It also has the feature of tracking your menstrual cycle. You can log your period, symptoms, mood, flow intensity and more in the Fitbit app. You can also get notified when your period’s due, and your fertile window. With all this, along with your sleep analysis and stress management, you can really understand your body.
Let’s get physical
When it comes to exercise, I keep it simple. I love a long walk/hike on a nice day. Or I’ll do a Yoga, Pilates, or Barre class. Nothing ever too intense. And don’t get me wrong, when summer comes back around, you may see me out on a run…maybe. So, I’m no serious fitness fanatic, but that doesn’t mean I can’t benefit from all the amazing features this Fitbit smartwatch has to offer. On the walks I have been doing, I completely forgot to start the exercise, as I was just out with a friend walking a dog, I didn’t think it’s something I better log. However, the smartwatch sensed and recognised that I was starting a walk after about 10 minutes. It buzzed me, asked if it was correct, and I said yes. It was that easy. You then get insights such as how many kilometres you did, your average pace, your heart rate, the time in certain heart rate zones, calories burned and steps.
If you’re the opposite of me and have a more regular exercise routine, such as the gym, or swimming, then this Fitbit is also perfect for you. The Sense 2 is waterproof, up to 50 metres of water, so you don’t have to worry about getting it wet. It also has GPS, and more than 40 different exercises. Whether you golf, ice skate, paddle board, row, canoe, ski, literally any exercise you can think of, it’s for you.
Another great thing about this fitness tracker, is that if you’re sat at a desk all day, like me, it gives you little reminders to move. Whether it’s a stretch, or a walk to the kitchen (can never have too many cups of tea), anything to take a break from looking at a screen. It’s a healthy habit to get in to as we often lose sight of moving our body when we’re busy at work. And, if you’d rather not have those reminders for some reason, you can turn them off easy-peasy.
Everything else
There’re a few other things I want to call out when it comes to this smartwatch.
Firstly, let me mention the battery life. Holy moly. It lasts forever. I can’t tell you the last time I charged mine, maybe a week ago, and it’s currently on 49%. I’ve never seen a device with a battery life like this. It’s also super quick charging. So, if you’re running low and you were about to pop to the gym, throw it on charge while you’re making that pre-workout shake, or changing into your workout clothes. I promise you it’ll be ready for when you need it.
Google Wallet. Now, I didn’t put my card on Google Wallet, just because I haven’t gotten round to it and honestly, I can’t see myself using it. But if you did want to, it’s super easy to set up! One downside in the Google Apps, is that Google Maps isn’t quite ready if you’re pairing your Fitbit with an IOS device. If you have an android, you’re in luck. However, according to Fitbit, it’ll be ready for IOS devices by Spring 2023.
Third party apps. Something that was missing for me was the ability to control my music from this little smartwatch. Third party apps such as Spotify, Apple Music aren’t, or aren’t yet, compatible with the Fitbit Sense 2. So, if you’re on a walk and you want to change the song, you have to do that from your phone. It may be a minor issue for most people, but I would’ve thought something so basic, and that was featured on previous Fitbits, would be in this new version. However, you do get text notifications which I love. Seeing your notifications on your wrist means that anything emergency-related you can see immediately. Plus, I just love saving taking your phone out your pocket or bag to realise the person who texted you was the bank.
I will say, the high-resolution display is very high-resolution. And you can change the clock display if you wish. On the app, you can choose from a variety of clock face designs and store up to 5 favourites on your wrist. If you have the premium subscription, you do get over a hundred more to choose from, but the ones you get for free are just as good.
Finally, it comes with Alexa built in. You can ask it to set you timers, remind you to go for a jog at 1pm, ask how your stats are today, and everything else. Personally, I love this while cooking. How handy to have a timer just on your wrist. Ideal.
Final Thoughts
I love this little health smartwatch. Whether you’re thinking of a smart watch solely for fitness purposes, wellbeing purposes, or because you want to keep track of your day-to-day life, this smartwatch suits everyone. If you’ve been looking at our other smartwatch reviews, you’ll know I always have my doubts with a smartwatch. Tracking steps and calories isn’t always good for my mental health. However, I found my little reminders to move perfect for when I’d just been sat at my desk all day. Even if I just went downstairs into the back garden for some fresh air. I love that I have a detailed sleep analysis, can understand my stress, manage my breathing, and see my texts. Plus, like I said, the charge lasts a lifetime. Sure, it has some minor downsides, but they’re just that, minor. So, if you can look past those, I think you have the perfect smartwatch on your hands.
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