Fitbit Charge 6 Fitness Tracker with Google apps, Heart Rate on Exercise Equipment, 6-Months Premium Membership Included, GPS, Health Tools and More, Obsidian/Black, One Size (S…

I upgraded from the Charge 5

What I like about the Charge 6:

– Great price
– Sensors to track body activity are more accurate (I don’t have a way to test this but other people in YouTube have and these sensors are really good for a device at this price point with no chest strap)
– Same great battery life. I get 6-7 days (I use normal brightness, do not use GPS, have sleep mode programmed, and keep the screen off unless I need to see it).
– The home button to return to the time screen is great.
– Triple tapping to zoom in is nice
– When it works the Google Maps app is really nice. When you launch the phone app it kicks in automatically (need to set it up this way in your Fitbit app) otherwise you have to start the walk on the phone app and then manually connect to the app from your Charge 6. It tells you where to turn and it is nicer/safer than staring at your phone. The connectivity to the Phone app however is unreliable. Lots of retries and fiddling with the bluetooth settings to get it to work. Feels like a beta. I hope this is improved with a future upgrade. I have my Charge device set to 12 hr time format but this app shows 24 hr format at the top which to me is confusing and it may be a bug. I hope this is addressed in a future update.
– More exercise modes and more settings/mode
– The double tapping for water locking the device seems to work a little better to me than the Charge 5.
– The unit’s vibration when alarm goes off seems to be more noticeable than in the Charge 5. Less likely to miss it.
– Bluetooth integration with gym cardio workout machines is nice however I don’t have any equipment to test this. I read that there is an issue with the encryption that Google uses. Just be aware that unless you are at a gym that has bought very recent equipment, the machines aren’t likely to support bluetooth. Most hotels I workout in don’t have this either. I don’t really need this but some people may find it useful.

What I don’t like:

– If you are on iOS you still can’t reply to texts (I know there is an iOS security constraint that doesn’t allow this but come on Google…time to find a workaround)
– Like the Charge 5 the GPS is terrible. It drains the battery and it is very inaccurate. I use my iPhone’s GPS tracking synced to my Charge 6 instead and it works great. If you don’t have your phone with you then you are out of luck.
– The biggest disappointment is the YouTube Music app. Like the Google Maps it is a remote control for the phone app. I’m a YouTube Music subscriber so I was really looking forward to this but the connectivity to the phone app is very unreliable (like the Google Maps app). You can’t really see your music library, find an artist, and select Shuffle Play. All you can do is use the playback controls. (which I already have in Siri and on my Powerbeats pro earbuds), see a list of your recently played songs, and a couple of Google created playlists that I don’t care to use. I really hope that they improve it in future software upgrades.
– Some exercise modes have an Auto Detect and Auto Stop feature. Basically this feature auto starts an exercise mode if the device detects that you are exercising. It sound good but in reality I found it to be more of a nuisance. The device can’t tell if I’m just in a hurry or warming up for a workout. If I’m in the middle of a workout and I slow down to catch my breath, the Charge 6 will ask me if I want to stop which means I’m forced to interact with the device when I don’t really want to. Luckily you can turn this feature off per mode.
– When you reach a new target zone the Charge 6 displays the new target zone and the number like the Charge 5 however Google has changed the number/graphic and made it impossibly small to read without stopping and staring or triple tapping which are tedious while you are moving during your routine. I hope Google improves this in a future software update.
– When the device is on exercise mode the screens shows the time at the very top. The Charge 5 I believe showed the total calories burned which is far more useful, Not sure why Google messed with this. If I need t know the time I can scroll to it during my workout or I can ask Siri.
– I use the timer a lot…it is still limited to 1 hour.

The phone app was cool until Google did a complete redesign which a lot of users are unhappy about.
I use the app and the web portal to log my food consumption and my weight. IMHO any fitness tracker is worthless if you don’t track both. The app calories data is also broken. The calories left for the day count is incorrect compared to the web portal (there is a difference of hundreds of calories). This to me is unacceptable and It has been broken for months. Not sure what Google is waiting on to fix it. As a workaround if I need to see how many calories I can consume…I just look at the portal on a browser on my mac, iPad or iPhone..

In spite of my dislikes overall I do like the Charge 6 and it is a nice upgrade specially for $100. The more accurate sensors are worth the upgrade. That said if you plan to upgrade because of the GPS or the YouTube Music app you may want to hold off.

Es un gran avance con relación a las primeras generaciones de Charges. Lo único que inexplicablemente no tiene es altímetro. Pero todo lo demás es de primera y a un costo con relación a otras marcas, realmente extraordinario.

Bought January 2024. So, I have had an Apple Watch since 2017. I LOVED it. But I didn’t love the battery time. The things I was interested in, like sleep tracking, I couldn’t do because it needed to charge or I couldn’t use it the next day. My mom has a Fitbit and for years was telling me to get one. After some health issues, I needed to start being more cognizant of my health. I didn’t want to spend another $5-600 on an Apple Watch that at most gets 2 days of battery now. I was interested in the Oura ring, but I have 60 lbs. to lose and those can’t be sized as you lose weight. So I researched and found the Fitbit Charge 6 was my best choice.

Mostly pro’s.
It is really comfortable. When I fell asleep accidentally with the Apple Watch my wrist was sore after. So far, I’m getting 6-7 days of charge out of it, which is a game changer. I now don’t miss days of tracking because I forgot to charge it.
I feel like the screen size is appropriate and it’s well made. I’m not sure about the accuracy, but reviews I’ve watched where people test them they seem close enough. And that’s good enough for me, I want a baseline.
You can adjust the haptics for notifications, I have it on the hardest vibration and it’s awesome. It’s easy to read the screen, just 2 taps. It says you can water lock it for swimming/shower but I haven’t utilized that yet.
The app… okay so when I purchased this (January 2024) they offered the premium app for 6 months free, then $80 a year. I will be keeping the premium. It still can be used without, but I want ALL the metrics you can get as well as meditations and workouts. It has replaced MyFitnessPal because I can track everything in this app. It also links with my Bluetooth scale. You can track steps, miles, calories, exercise, activity minutes (150 minutes a week as recommended), standing activity by getting up every hour for 250 steps, (it reminds you). SpO2, HRV, skin temp., HR, sleep (including stages). I’m sure I’m forgetting something. I haven’t used the GPS function which I heard drains the battery significantly.

Somewhat cons, or things I would appreciate it having. This device is logged in through Google. I do see messages and notifications from my iPhone 13, but are unable to respond which is fine. You can control YouTube music, but not your Apple Music. It’s Just an adjustment from my Apple Watch. I’m also not able to sync it with Apple Maps because I hate Google maps. And I haven’t figured out how to use that between my phone and the Fitbit yet even after watching tutorials. I wish they had more watch faces to choose from, I think there was about 12?. I just felt like the one I picked was as close to what I wanted, but it wasn’t. The time takes up a large portion of the screen which I feel like is unnecessary. What I feel the app is lacking is something to track when you’ve taken your meds. If they did, this app would literally be a one stop shop for my health/fitness tracking. Note: a comment someone made about med tracking was just set an alarm. The problem is that if you are someone like me that is never at the same place everyday, you could turn the alarm off and then forget later whether or not you took them. It’s a really quick fix they could do.
I HIGHLY recommend the Charge 6, I wish I had listened to my mom and got it a while ago. The few things I gave up by switching from my Apple Watch is minor. I’m not missing them other than Apple Maps and Music.

Feature-Packed: The Fitbit Charge 6 offers a wide range of features, including heart rate monitoring, built-in GPS, and health tools.
Google Integration: With Google essentials like Maps, Wallet, and YouTube Music controls, it seamlessly integrates into your daily routine.
Battery Life: The Charge 6 boasts a decent battery life of up to 7 days.
Heart Rate Accuracy: While it provides accurate heart rate readings, the GPS connectivity can be flaky if the strap is too tight.
Sleep Tracking: As always, Fitbit excels in sleep tracking reliability.
Overall, the Fitbit Charge 6 is a great fitness tracker with a few minor flaws. If you’re after a casual wearable, it’s an excellent choice! 🌟