When comparing Fitbit Zip vs Fitbit Charge 2, the Slant community recommends Fitbit Charge 2 for most people. In the question“What are the best fitness trackers that pair with iPhones?” Fitbit Charge 2 is ranked 1st while Fitbit Zip is ranked 8th. The most important reason people chose Fitbit Charge 2 is:
It gives you a lot of stats on your activities thanks to the GPS, altimeter, and heart rate monitor. It can track your sleep, show you alerts directly on the display, and offers a variety of helpful features such as reminders to move and a breathing function that helps you relax.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Social component to help keep you motivated
The Zip keeps you motivated through friendly competition. Along with giving you a rank among your friends, you can also cheer them on or taunt them.
Pro Easy to hide under your clothes
The Fitbit Zip fitness tracker is very small, so you can easily wear it somewhere that it will be hidden (belt, pocket, bra strap, etc.). Unlike most trackers which have wrist bands, you don't have to worry about trying to make it blend in with what you're wearing.
Pro Fitbit app lets you track a variety of health-related stats
The app doesn't only display the stats from your device, it also lets you track a variety of different health-related stats by entering them manually. You can log your food for the day, how you slept, activity, weight, and more.
Pro Automatic synching that's easy to setup
The Fitbit Zip fitness tracker wirelessly syncs with both PC and smartphones via the Fitbit app. After getting it set up you don't even think about syncing, it's just automatic.
Pro Gives you a lot of features for the price
It gives you a lot of stats on your activities thanks to the GPS, altimeter, and heart rate monitor. It can track your sleep, show you alerts directly on the display, and offers a variety of helpful features such as reminders to move and a breathing function that helps you relax.
Pro Reminds you to move throughout the day
The fitness tracker will give you hourly reminders to get up and move for a few minutes, so you're not spending your whole day hunched over a desk.
Pro Great choice of replacement bands
Including regular vinyl bands, leather, metal, luxury, etc.
Pro The large display is easy to read
The Charge 2 has a very clear black and white display that's easy to read in both light and dark settings. It gives you a lot of activity stats directly on the display, which keeps you from needing to frequently check the smartphone app.
Pro Only needs to be charged every 4-5 days
Compared to other fitness trackers with large display screens, and Charge 2 has an impressive battery life. It can go 4-5 days without needing to be recharged, so there is minimal interruption to your tracking.
Pro Great ecosystem
Lots of users, nice apps (Win10 UWP app as well), etc.
Cons
Con Lacking many of the features that fitness trackers often offer
The Fitbit Zip only tracks distance, steps, and calories burned. It's basically a pedometer with a smart tracking platform you can use for manually tracking the rest of your day. It can't tell you stairs climbed or heart rate, and there is no alarm, sleep tracking, or GPS.
Con Issues with the battery not working
The contacts in the device are very sensitive. If you don't place the battery in just right, it will only work for a short period of time before the battery needs to be readjusted or replaced.
Even when following instructions provided by the company, some people report that still can't get it working properly. The battery may end up lasting days instead of the promised 4-6 months.
You can see how to properly change the battery here.
Con Easy to lose
The tiny size of the Fitbit Zip makes it very easy to lose track of.
Rather than a wrist watch like many other trackers, it only has a slide on clip. The clip is fairly secure for normal activity, but you may knock the tracker off without realizing it.
Con Lacks a rechargeable battery
The Fitbit Zip fitness tracker runs on a 3-volt lithium-ion battery that lasts between 4 and 6 months. It requires getting a new battery every time it runs out of charge.
Con Weak vibration causes alerts to easily go missed
The Charge 2 has a very weak vibration that is easy to miss, especially when you're active. As a result, it's easy to miss silent alarms or reminders to get up and move.
Con No smart alarm
Although the feature has been requested by the community since 2014.
Con No actionable notifications / call and text only
You can only see call and text notifications, no Facebook, Twitter, email, etc. And you can only see them, you cannot reply, delete, dismiss, etc.
Con App is not intuitive and terrible on Android
It is clunky and annoying, but works part time. There's a report on another Android that it just doesn't work. No alerts for 250 steps per hour. Not accurate. Clunky non intuitive functionality.
Con No water resistance
It is not water proof or even water-resistant. The watch will still function if you get a little splash of water on it, but you definitely can’t take it if you go swimming,
Con Lower quality screen that scratches easily
Rather than gorilla glass which is commonly used in the more expensive trackers, the Charge 2 fitness tracker uses a thick plastic display screen. It makes the device appear lower quality and scratches very easily.
Con Lavender band turns blue after a short period of wear
The specific color of band can start to turn blue after only the first day of wear. It very quickly looks stained and dirty.
