That’s been standard on economy class Fitbits for a few years now. Yes, it logs steps, calories burned, flights of stairs climbed, distance moved and ‘active minutes’, all of which you can set goals for. The Ionic is the most powerful Fitbit so far, thanks to built-in GPS, 50m water resistance and some new Coach workouts (see ‘Sports tracking’ for more on those).īut what it really nails better than most smartwatches is the daily, background fitness tracking that’s Fitbit’s hallmark.

The Ionic has personality, maybe even a divisive one, but I’ll take that any day over another designed-by-committee blandwatch. The touchscreen and interface aren’t the zippiest, but you do get three hardware buttons to help you get around – and these are real boon when you’re out exercising.Īll in all, Fitbit deserves a lot of credit for not just making a ‘me too’ Apple Watch. You’ll have absolutely no problem reading it in bright sunlight. It’s crisp, sharp and has the same impressive brightness as the Apple Watch. Nowhere near the size of the Apple Watch’s wardrobe, of course, but a decent start.Īnother big win is the display. Right now, there are three types (classic, sport and leather), with seven variations in total. Not that the Ionic is completely lacking when it comes to band options. I’d say it’s more comfortable to wear than the Apple Watch, though the latter has a more chameleon-like versatility thanks to its range of bands and different case sizes. But when you wear the Ionic, it nicely curves around your wrist rather than sitting on top of it. Side-by-side with the Apple Watch, it looks to have the same girth. In a poll of eight people in the Stuff office, only one person didn’t like the design.Ī lot of this is to do with how well the Ionic fits on your wrist. But stick an Ionic on your wrist and it’s hard not to be won over by its 80s sci-fi charm. I was initially put off by the aluminium case’s sharp corners and screen bezels. Unlike the Apple Watch, the Ionic actually looks better in the flesh than it does in photographs.

Fitbit ionic smart watch