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On Our Radar
5 January 2021

Run Into 2021 With 9 of the Best Fitness Watches

Words By Eliza Sears

Fitness trackers have come a long way from the traditional pedometer. Today, smartwatches not only tell us the time but track our whole day, using data gathered to help monitor and improve our health.

Withings

From the office to the gym, Withings Hybrid ScanWatch offers luxury and sophistication with all the smart features needed to track your activity, health and wellbeing.

This water-resistant, scratch proof watch has a 30-day battery life; there’s no need to take it off.

Stay connected with message previews on the watch face, so you can check messages without looking at your phone.

With over 30 sports to choose from picking one to suit your workout is only a tap away. You can accurately map your movement with automatic activity detection, as well as inbuilt GPS including distance and elevation providing a full picture of your fitness regime.

Health Mate, Withings very own health and fitness coach, offers users extra support to track activity, weight, heart health and blood oxygen levels when you’re out and about or in a deep slumber.

Withings algorithm monitors your sleep quality throughout the night and feeds all data back to you with detailed reports on your sleep cycles, duration, regularity and disturbances.

By gathering this vital information, you can say goodbye to blaring alarms; your ScanWatch knows when best to wake you using a light vibration. So, you can wake up refreshed and ready to take on the day.

Withings ScanWatch retails for $479

Fitbit

Fitbit Sense will help you tune into your body by logging and tracking everything from your body’s response to stress, mood, skin temperature, heart rate, sleep and physical activity.

Sense gives you automatic access to a 6-month Fitbit Premium trial complete with personalised insights, mindfulness practices, workouts, advanced sleep tools and much more, so you can try Fitbit’s premium service before committing long-term.

Personalised health targets help you work smarter with targeted heart rate zones and active minutes, making it easier to achieve your goals and stay on track.

Fitbit also makes it easy to keep track of your menstrual cycle, by logging periods and symptoms you can track ovulation and discover patterns in your cycle.

When it comes to charging time and battery life, Sense is quick and long-lasting, charged for the day in only 12 minutes, a full charge lasts six days.

With voice assist and Google Assistant and Alexa built-in to your watch, you can stay connected, send messages, control music and podcasts, or your smart home devices all from your wrist.

Fitbit Sense retails for $499.95

Samsung Galaxy

Classic design, genuine aged leather band and featherlight frame, the Samsung Galaxy Watch3 is sleek sophistication at its best.

With over 40 watch faces to choose from you’ll never be bored by the Galaxy Watch3, change the face for a fresh new look.

Compatible with all Galaxy products and some non-Galaxy products, the Watch3 will keep you connected and up to date, with everything you need on your wrist. If you prefer to exercise sans phone, opt for cellular option and never miss a call or text.

The Watch3 comes with over 120 at-home workouts, leaving no shortage of ways to stay active from your lounge room.

If you’re looking to go off the beaten track, the watch’s GPS capability and fall detection will give you extra peace of mind. In case of a hard fall, an alert will be sent to your emergency contact with your location to ensure you receive help.

Like other smartwatches, the Watch3 provides real-time heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen levels so you can leave the monitoring to the watch and focus on moving your body. Samsung Watch3 battery life lasts up to 2 days.

Samsung Watch 3 retails for $499 (down from $649)

Garmin

The Garmin Venu Sq has all the features you want in a fitness companion and much more. This stylish watch is designed to be worn no matter the occasion with a wide variety of watch bands on the market so you can have a few on rotation.

While Garmin specialises in fitness monitoring, their watches have been developed to add convenience to your day beyond your workout. With features like Garmin Pay, downloadable music and smart notifications your Garmin Venu Sq will replace your wallet and phone.

Doing what Garmin does best, track, map and monitor activity data, the Garmin Venu Sq includes the latest technology. You can even track your body battery energy levels, making it easier to decide when to push through or rest.

Whether you’re a beginner looking to run your first 5K or a veteran training for a marathon, Garmin Coach will help you achieve your goals through personalised training programs. As for cross-training, Garmin has you covered with preloaded yoga, pilates, cardio and strength workouts adding variety to your training regime and keeping things interesting. The Venu Sq has a long-lasting battery life of 6 days in smartwatch mode and up to 14 hours in GPS mode

Garmin Venu Sq retails for $429

Apple

For the tech-obsessed, Apple fanatic, Apple Watch Series 6 is the watch for you.

The Series 6 offers users a host of features all available at a glance with enhanced Always-On Retina display and the bonus of an aesthetically pleasing design and a plethora of watch bands, so your watch can evolve as often as your style does.

Apple’s latest endeavour, Apple Fitness+ makes the switch to the Series 6 more enticing than ever.

Apple Fitness+ comes free for three months when you purchase an eligible watch (series three and up). Bringing world-class workouts to you, from five to 45 minutes there’s a workout to suit everyone anywhere, anytime.

Apple Fitness+ is designed to dynamically integrate your personal metrics from Apple Watch, along with your favourite music from your favourite podcast, and inspire like no other workout in the world.

Apple Watch Series retail starts at $599

Polar

Polar Vantage V2 with H10 heart rate sensor is the whole package deal with wrist-based heart rate, GPS, performance tests and recovery tracking.

Designed for triathletes, the Vantage V2 supports over 130 sports making it the ultimate endurance training partner.

The waterproof multisport GPS watch automatically detects your heart rate, swimming style, distance, pace, strokes and rest times.

With the Polar Vantage V2, you get access to the full Polar Flow where everything is connected. Your training data is conveniently available on one platform anytime, anywhere so you can plan, train and analyse your progress and smash your goals.

Plan your route using Komoot, import it to your Vantage V2, your watch will navigate for you. Use Strava Live Segments to get live alerts as you ride or run to add a little competition to your route. The Polar Vantage V2 with H10 heart rate sensor has a continuous battery life of 40 hours.

Polar Vantage V2 retails for $799

Suunto

Inspired by Suunto’s Finnish heritage, Suunto 3 is designed to work with your lifestyle and to take a holistic approach to fitness.

The watches adaptive training guidance allows you to choose your goals: to maintain your current fitness level, improve it moderately (default mode), or boost your fitness with a more intensive plan. Based on your choice, Suunto 3 creates a 7-day training plan with optimal duration and intensity for each exercise.

Suunto recognises the health benefits of good sleep and recovery.

By measuring your stress and recovery throughout the day, Suunto 3 better understands how your body recovers, so you know when to slow down or speed up. With Suunto 3, you can also track your sleep, track how long you slept, and how well your sleep supports your recovery, making your training more effective than ever. Suunto 3 has a continuous battery life of 40 hours.

Suunto 3 retails for $329

iConnect by Timex

iConnect by Timex offers you the ability to track your activity and sleep, giving insights into your health and physical fitness.

You can keep up to date by connecting your watch to a smart device to receive calls and messages directly to the watch’s graphical colour display.

If you love to listen to your favourite playlist while working out, iConnect by Timex allows you to control the beat from your wrist, even during the sweatiest of workouts.

For those of us that love to maintain an active lifestyle, the iConnect by Timex is sure to provide you with an extra nudge now and then to keep moving. The iConnect’s battery continuously tracks your activity for up to 6 days.

iConnect by Timex retails for $99.95

Letscom

With an inbuilt GPS, the LETSCOM Fitness Tracker records up to 14 different exercises including walking, running and riding, so you can map your route, distance and pace.

By connecting your watch to your smart device, you can receive notifications from all your favourite messaging apps, ensuring you don’t miss a beat.

LETSCOM records your health data in real-time, including steps, distance, calories burned, active minutes and sleep, so you can move your body, rest and analyse the results and adjust your regime to improve your fitness and overall health.

With a built-in USB plug, the LETSCOM fitness tracker is easy to charge with any USB block and computer, simply plug in your watch to your computer, and you’ll have a full week’s (7 days) worth of power ready for your next adventure.

LETSCOM Fitness Tracker retails for $59.15