When comparing Garmin Vivosmart vs Fitbit Flex 2, the Slant community recommends Fitbit Flex 2 for most people. In the question“What are the best fitness trackers that pair with iPhones?” Fitbit Flex 2 is ranked 4th while Garmin Vivosmart is ranked 16th. The most important reason people chose Fitbit Flex 2 is:
The fitness tracker is completely waterproof and keeps track of your laps, pace, and total duration of your swim.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Smartwatch-like functionality
Vivosmart is capable of showing smartphone notifications and control music playback.
Pro Logs exercise
Pro Week's battery life
Pro Some customization options
Pro Displays time
Pro Good step counter
Pro Great option for swimmers
The fitness tracker is completely waterproof and keeps track of your laps, pace, and total duration of your swim.
Pro Sleek design fits a variety of occasions
The Flex 2 is a thin band all the way around that has a modern and sleek design. Since it isn't super sporty in appearance, you can confidently wear it for a lot of different occasions without it looking out of place.
Pro The app and web platform do an excellent job of keeping you motivated
The Fitbit app lets you set goals and milestones which reward you with badges and trophies when reached.
You can also challenge friends and family, competing against them for top spot on the leader board.
Pro Replaceable wristband with lots of options available
The fitness tracker itself is a separate part from the wristband that can be taken out and put in a different band. Therefore, not only are there 10 wristband colors to choose from on the official store, a different color of band can be worn every day with the same tracker. There are even custom bands available from third-party vendors.
Cons
Con Companion app is difficult to use
The way the information is presented is confusing and incoherent and there's no logical way to find necessary information.
Con No activity autodetection
Vivosmart does not automatically detect when you start to walk or run, you have to start and stop activity manually.
Con Reps counting feature does not work for some exercises
Reps counting feature is not reliable, sometimes it misses few reps and with some exercises it can count 1 rap, even if you did 10 reps for example. And it can't detect when you start the exercise, so you have to start and stop the counter manually. In practice I frequently forget to start and to stop the counter so after some time I simply sopped using this feature.
Con Difficult to check current time because display most of the time is turned off
In order to turn on the display, for example to see current time, you need to raise you hand and after some delay display some times turns on, sometimes not.
Other option is to double tap the display, which requires both hands.
If you frequently checking current time, it is really annoying.
Con App requires you to provide personal data in order to work
You have to register in the app providing information about your age, gender and weight.
Con App does not work without internet connectivity
It is not possible for example to enter your weight if you are not connected to the internet.
Con No GPS data is collected
Con Underwhelming battery life
The fitness tracker's battery lasts about 3-4 days on average.
Con Can't be paired with external HR monitors
The Fitbit Flex 2 fitness tracker has no built in heart rate monitor and lacks the ability to pair with external HR monitors.