If you’re looking for a fitness tracker with a little more style, then you’ll be interested to see the latest device from Withings. It’s called the Activité – that’s French for activity, language fans – and rather than being another boring black wrist strap, it wraps traditional fitness tracking tech up in a swish, elegant wristwatch design. It’s a far cry from the Pulse, one of Withings previous attempts to break into wearable fitness tracking.
The round face is covered in sapphire glass, which should keep it free from scratches and more serious damage, while there’s a choice of either a leather or plastic strap, depending on whether you want to wear the Activité in the gym or at the office. The body is made from stainless steel, comes in either silver or black, and has been designed by Swiss and French watch makers.
It has a pair of analog dials, with the main one telling you the time, and the second providing at-a-glance information on your daily fitness targets. The glass is touch activated, so a tap can change its mode, while a Bluetooth LE connection ensures the data it collects is always synced with your smartphone.
Track your fitness in style
The Activite has a pedometer for tracking your steps, along with a variety of other sensors for measuring the distance you’ve walked and estimating the calories burned. Interestingly, it’ll also track your sleep patterns, and provide data on light and deep sleep, plus the amount of time it took you to fall asleep. The watch is waterproof to 50 meters, and can be used by swimmers too. Don’t worry about switching modes, the Activité automatically detects what you’re doing, and selects the correct mode for you.
Other features include an alarm – which uses vibration to wake you up in the morning – and integration with the Withings Health Mate app. It’s iOS-only at the moment, and is where you set daily goals and track ongoing progress. Finally, the Activité doesn’t need to be recharged, because it uses a standard watch battery which will last around a year.
You’re going to have to splash out on the Activité though, as it’s priced at $390, with a release date set for later this year. That’s two to three times the price of competing products, but considering the design and use of high quality materials, many may consider it good value.
