Fitness: Be astute when choosing a smartwatch

Wearable tech has exploded into a multi-billion-dollar industry that has yet to reach its peak. What started out as a simple wrist band that tracked daily steps, technology designed to monitor movement and health is now found in watches, rings, sunglasses, glasses, swim googles, necklaces and clothing.

Fitness fanatics were early adopters with most second- and third-generation wearables expanding their features to include detailed training metrics for runners, swimmers and cyclists. But it’s the addition of health features that has caused the wearable market to expand beyond the exercise community. Today’s wearables track heart rate, sleep, blood pressure, oxygen levels, blood oxygen, test hearing, perform an electrocardiogram and provide fall detection.

But the true benefit of wearable technology isn’t only in the accumulation of daily health and fitness metrics, but in the information offered when those metrics are converged and tracked over time, giving a big-picture overview of lifestyle habits and health markers.

If you’re new to the wearable market deciding which product suits your lifestyle is becoming harder as the number of options increase. From big players like Apple, Fitbit and Garmin to Samsung, Google, Oura, there are plenty of features and price points to choose from. Here are some suggestions on how to narrow down the choice.

What do you want to track?

Make a check list, in order of importance, of the metrics you want to track and compare your list to the features provided by any of the devices you’re considering. Some wearables are best known for tracking health and wellness, and some for tracking fitness/exercise habits. But even within those two large categories there are products that specialize in sport-specific stats (running, cycling, swimming, scuba diving) while others offer a good mix of both fitness and health features.

Take a look at the apps that are compatible with the device, as you’ll likely want to take advantage of a wide selection of non-proprietary apps that track additional activities and/or health metrics.

Be forewarned the more features the device offers the higher the price tag, so be as specific as you can as to what metrics you want better insight.

Style, comfort and accessibility

To get the most from your wearable you need to wear it 24/7, so find a style that fits comfortably and suits your lifestyle. The largest selection of wearables come in the form of smartwatches, but you can also opt for rings and bands (display only — no watch).

Larger watch/display faces are easier to read, but don’t blend as well with work attire. And some feel bulky, especially at night. Make sure all the buttons and dials are easy to use (I’m a lefty so I appreciate that my smartwatch is set up so I can use my left hand to toggle between applications).

Battery life is also important, keeping in mind the more features a wearable offers, including the number that run continuously in the background, the shorter the battery life.

How comfortable are you with technology?

Navigating among all the features on a wearable can be tricky as can configuring any health status notifications and customizing the item so you can see and access the features you use the most. And as enticing as some of the features are if you struggle activating them, turning up the volume of music while on the run, checking your heart rate while in the pool or starting a timer or checking your pace or step count, they’ll be of little use.

If you struggle with technology some brands like Apple offer in-store tutorials, but in the absence of one-on-one assistance there are plenty of tutorials online. The best rule of thumb for first-timers in the wearables market is to start with a basic model and upgrade only if you grow out of your starter unit.

Affordability and compatibility

Wearables sync your workout and health stats with a phone app, so you need to buy a unit that is compatible with your phone. The Apple Watch works only with an iPhone, some units only work with Androids and some are compatible with both systems.

Most of the popular brands have a few price points to choose from, so explore all your options. You can expect to get several years of wear out of most of the higher-end models, so don’t think you need to upgrade every year or every other year. Also, some wearables offer services only available through a monthly or annual subscription, so keep that in mind when looking at your budget.

Privacy and accuracy

Wearables collect your personal data, so it’s worth looking into how they secure that information. Check out any privacy statements on the product’s website. If there isn’t any information available, consider what that means when it comes to all your health and lifestyle data.

Also important to consider is how that data is interpreted. Most health and fitness metrics are derived based on proprietary algorithms that aren’t shared, but some of the products have independent studies verifying the accuracy of their metrics. That matters. Most manufacturers of wearable tech products warn they are not medical devices, but are purchased based on the expectation the user will make lifestyle changes based on the interpretation of their health and fitness data. If you’re going to make decisions based on your sleep score, VO₂ max, heart rate variability, stress rating etc., you better have faith in their accuracy.

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