UPDATED! Fitness tech gadgets: My “road test” results

I’ve updated this post based on my experience after it was published. See text in blue bold for updates.

With the holidays approaching, I’ve been seeking ways to reinforce my motivation to meet health goals. This time of year, it’s all too easy not to be active enough due to long hours at work and colder weather outside.

So, after hearing about friends’ experiences using fitness devices, I decided to try a few myself:

• Jawbone UP activity and sleep tracker
• Fitbit Ultra activity and sleep tracker
• Withings scale

All three devices worked as advertised for me, although there are some caveats potential buyers should be aware of…

Jawbone UP (pictured above):

PROS –

• Easy to wear “bracelet” design
• Compact and unobtrusive
• Push button to change modes is easy to use and works well
• Tracks activity (tracks steps when not in “active” mode)
• Tracks sleep in a fairly granular manner. Comfortable to wear while sleeping. (It’s helped me understand why I’m so tired during the day… I don’t sleep very soundly at night.)

CONS –

• First generation product with (an apparently) high failure rate. (More on this below.)
• Only syncs with iPhone app (no joy for folks with other smartphones or even laptop users)
• Surprisingly, doesn’t sync via bluetooth: User must connect UP to iPhone via headphone jack
• iPhone sync process can be fussy: I find it works best if I restart my iPhone, open UP app, insert UP into headset jack, turn up headset volume, then initiate sync right away within UP app. (It really shouldn’t require such a precise process!)
• Progress and metrics can only be viewed on iPhone app (not able to view metric tracking/dashboard on web site)
• Food tracking is limited
• Doesn’t automatically sync activity metrics with my favorite fitness/food journal app, Lose It!
• Due to bracelet design, your arms must be swinging during exercise to accurately register activity (not happy news for bikers!)

Caveats:
The Jawbone UP’s early failure rate almost dissuaded me from purchasing this product. Even so, I bought at my Apple Store, taking care to keep the package and receipt *just in case*. And the failure rates are not just anonymous metrics — I know someone who is on his third Jawbone UP — the 1st two failed.

With so many reports of early hardware failure, I’m not sure I’d give it as a gift until Jawbone comes out with UP v.2

UPDATED: A big con arose for me… it completely stopped syncing. No matter what I did, it would not sync. I finally wound up returning it to Apple (where I bought it) as defective.

Fitbit Ultra:

 

PROS –

• Syncs wirelessly (dock connected via USB to your laptop)
• Comes with seemingly handy plastic clip to connect to your clothing. (More on this below.)
• Tracks activity and sleep
• Offers detailed online dashboard at fitbit.com
• Offers an iPhone app, as well as a mobile web site for other smartphones

UPDATE: I decided to keep the Fitbit after the UP stopped syncing. Based on the variety of tracking devices available on the market, Fitbit is among the best. I wrapped the Fitbit “holster” in electrical tape to make it less slippery (less likely to slide off my belt), and added a layer of electrical tape inside the holster to add friction (make it less likely the device itself would slide out on its own).

CONS –

• Sleep tracking requires inserting device into cloth wristband (I found this a little uncomfortable)
• Sleep tracking is not as granular as Jawbone UP
• Integrates with Lose It! mobile app but in a confusing way. (More on this below.)
• SUPER easy to lose! It’s flown off my belt several times.
• Fitbit iPhone app is okay but not as granular as I’d like

Caveats:
The plastic clip is slippery! It’s far too easy to lose the Fitbit Ultra (and at $99, you don’t want to risk losing it!). Integrates with Lose It! app but only populates Lose It’s exercise metrics if you burn a certain number of calories (hey, I want credit for all activity, as a motivator to be even more active!).

If you buy a Fitbit Ultra, be sure to find a way to affix it to your clothing so that it won’t fly off.

Withings Scale:

PROS –

• Super easy to use… just weigh yourself and your weight is automatically synced to your my.withings.com dashboard
• Easy to set up: Insert batteries, then connect scale to your computer via USB to complete set up (including enabling WIFI sync).
• User can enable integration with Lose It! app and Fitbit dashboard.
• Offers multiple mobile apps (WiScale app for iPhone and Withings app for Android).

CONS –

• Expensive at $159 (see Amazon page for product details & reviews).

Caveats:
Aside from cost, no caveats I can think of. Does what it promises.

Special mention: Lose It! fitness / food journal app

I first started using Lose It! a few years ago on my iPhone and missed it terribly when I moved to an android phone.

I love its robust food database and how easy it is to update and review my food and activity metrics.

However, since then, a Lose It! Android app has been released. Glad to see this great app available for more phones!

UPDATE to add another special mention: F.lux. It’s software for Windows, Mac, Linux, and jailbroken iOS devices. It automatically adjusts your screen brightness by time of day. If you use your computer before bedtime, it’s a must have… I installed it yesterday and noticed a big difference in how soundly I slept last night.

So what combination works best for me?

I’m still using the Jawbone UP and Withings scale with Lose It! iPhone app and web site dashboard:

• I manually add activity tracked on the UP into Lose It!
• Since I have Lose It! linked to my Withings scale, my weight is automatically posted to my LoseIt! account.
• I monitor my sleep metrics via the UP iPhone app.

Both the UP bracelet and Withings scale have been a good fit for me, offering motivation while not requiring a lot of effort or workarounds.

• I found the Fitbit Ultra works well but wasn’t practical for me because it kept coming off my belt — I decided it would be too easy to lose. (UPDATED: Fixed this with some electrical tape)
• I recommend Jawbone UP with some reservation. It does what it does well, but seems prone to early hardware failure based on user reports. (UPDATED: And my UP failed as well. Great device, disappointing quality issues.)
• I recommend Withings scale without reservation.
• You can’t go wrong with the Lose It! app for iPhone and android!
• UPDATED: F.lux is a must have, as well!

I <3 Zephyr

Reading Venturebeat earlier today, I learned of a cool iPhone app that I downloaded & like alot: Zephyr

While Zephyr isn’t quite as cool as Ocarina [iTunes] — there’s no blowing into iPhone’s microphone to create music this time — it adds another element: Messages. You see, you create music on Zephyr by touching the screen. While you could just draw gibberish, the point is to send a holiday message (the writing is in snow flakes) to someone elsewhere in the world. For example, in testing out the app, I’ve already gotten the messages “Peace” and “Happy Holidays,” accompanied by the music produced from writing those statements (see video below).

via Ocarina maker Smule back with a holiday iPhone app, Zephyr » VentureBeat.

What do you feel grateful for?

I recently discovered a new iPhone app, Gratitude Journal, and it’s quickly become my favorite way to journal.

I’ve long kept a journal and found it to be a beneficial activity. Carrying an iPhone, it seemed natural to keep a journal on my phone so I could add entries no matter where I was. Unfortunately, I hadn’t found any iPhone apps that I felt compelled to routinely use for journaling or that password-protected my entries in case my phone was lost or stolen.

Until now…

I love the beautiful simplicity of Gratitude Journal’s user interface design. As you journal, you add bullet points – no pressure to add long entries, just add a quick thought of gratitude, press return and add another (lather, rinse, repeat). You can rate your day from 1 to 5 stars, and also add a photo from your iPhone’s Camera Roll (if you’d like). If desired, you can add a 4-digit password to protect your entries.

Because the Gratitude Journal focuses you on the good things in your life, it feels great to journal using this app. And it quickly becomes a wonderful habit.

Carla Kay White (the app creator) blogged about why she wanted to create this app and how she’ll be donating a portion of the proceeds to charity: The Making of an iPhone App – Gratitude!

Gratitude Journal costs 99 cents at the iTunes App Store. How it’ll make you feel using it every day? Priceless.

IPhone App Review: NatsuLion

I recently ran across a new Twitter app: NatsuLion for iPhone. It has a cute little icon, but don’t underestimate this app – it’s well-designed, fast, and full-featured. And did I mention… free?

 

 

Like every other Twitter app for iPhone, NatsuLion displays “tweets” from your friends. What sets NatsuLion apart is how much information it packs into each screen: Until I view a tweet directed to me in the main stream, NatsuLion displays the number of replies, direct messages, etc. as a number on the Replies badge at the bottom of the screen.

 

It also color-codes tweets directed to me within the main twitter stream:

Red = Reply

Blue = Direct Message

Yellow = Auto-search on my username

 

Aside from enabling quick “at a glance” viewing of my Twitter stream, NatsuLion provides a variety of settings to enable a personalized experience. For example, “Use Safari” means that NatsuLion opens web sites within the app rather than in Safari (something I find very handy). I like having the ability to fetch 200 messages, and then have NatsuLion fetch even more messages (by enabling “Autopagerize”) if I get to the bottom of the 200 message list. There are 2 themes: Dark and Light – I prefer Light, but Dark is also attractive.

I’ve tried all the major Twitter apps for Iphone (both free & paid), and consider NatsuLion a significant find. It loads fast, helps me identify messages I need to review quickly via color-coding and unread count, and has an attractive, easy to use interface.

Highly recommended. Get it at the iPhone app store here.

My 30+ favorite iPhone apps (this week :-)

Air Sharing: Enables you to use wifi to copy files from your computer onto your iPhone.

AirMe: Using this app, you can shoot photos & upload to Flickr with additional data embedded into tags (e.g., location, weather). Here’s an example.

AP Mobile News Network: Great news app.

Bloomberg: Excellent stock news app. Think of it like the iPhone Stocks app on steroids.

Camerabag: Apply cool film effects to your photos. Choose from Helga, 1974, Lolo, Cinema, and 1962. (You can see a sample photo with 1962 effect applied here.)

Crosswords: Robust crossword app with ability to download a variety of free puzzles.

Equivalence: Calculator with conversion functionality. Very handy!  

Fizz Weather: Excellent weather app that includes radar, 2-day & 5-day forecast, etc.

Flickr: This is actually Flickr’s web app (not an app store download). http://m.flickr.com

i.TV: New (and very well done) app that downloads your local movie and TV listings.

iChillout: Relaxation sounds with timer.

iGas: Gas prices for nearby stations.

iZen Garden: Sand garden with relaxing music.

Kiwi: Wikipedia-type app.

Koi Pond: Beautiful koi fish pond with relaxing music (not practical by any means, but very elegant).

Last.fm: Another radio app. Similar to Pandora Radio, but Last.fm tracks tend to be less mainstream.

Meditator: Meditation app (timer & meditation sounds).

MyDelicious: Lists your delicious bookmarks.

Newsstand: Very cool RSS reader that displays feeds as magazines on rack.

Pandora Radio: My favorite radio app. I love Pandora’s Spa radio.

Photogene: Excellent photo editing app.

ReMovem (free): Basic but fun game.

Solebon Solitaire: Solitaire game suite.

Stanza: Excellent ebook reader.

ToDo: To Do app that syncs with your online ToodleDo or Remember the Milk account.

Twittelator Pro: Twitter app (can view by replies, all friends, everyone, search, etc).

WhitePages Mobile: Includes business search, people search, and reverse phone directory.

WordBook: Dictionary

WordPress: Great for publishing to one’s WordPress blog while on the go.

WriteRoom: I use it to create notes to myself. More robust and elegant than the default notes app.

WunderRadio: Excellent radio app – lots of radio stations. (I use WunderRadio to listen to CNN-TV on my phone.)

Woe is me, MobileMe

I love the MobileMe concept. Really, I do.

It’s the execution that worries me, with email outages occurring even now, 30+ days following rollout.

While Apple works on MobileMe stability, I’m using my old fusemail email aggregator (IMAP) account and forwarding to MobileMe. That way I don’t need to worry while Apple irons out the bugs.