Skip to main content

Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review

Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review

Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review

Introduction


Whether because it's part of its corporate DNA, or simply the result of lessons learned, Samsung has consistently done its best to hedge its bets. When smartwatches first became a thing, the company was quick to market with the Galaxy Gear. And when VR started trending up, Samsung was again at the forefront, offering its own vision, and quickly forging strategic alliances.

Fitness trackers are no exception, and this is no news in the context of Samsung's product portfolio. The first proper, standalone gadget for the maker was the original Gear Fit, featuring a curved display, lending it a rather Sci-Fi look.

Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review
It's no longer the early days of wearables, however, and the fitness tracker's refresh in the Gear Fit 2 no longer feels otherworldly, nor does it enjoy a relatively free reign of the market. With competition mounting, Samsung better have come up with some worthwhile improvements over the past two years and a half.

Let's see if they did.

In the box:

  • Gear Fit 2
  • Charging stand with USB plug

Design, weight, and fit


Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review
Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review
Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review

If you need an example of changing fashion—even in tech—then the Samsung Gear Fit 2 is the perfect one. Featuring a curved display and a sporty, rubbery band, our unit feels decidedly more mundane in today's climate compared to its predecessor, which felt wonderfully geeky. The aura of nerdy mysticism having worn off, the Fit 2 actually comes across as a far more conventional, purposeful gadget.

It doesn't all have to do with our changing understanding of wearable design, however, for Samsung has made the good decision to downsize the display—from 1.84 inches to 1.5 inches with the Fit 2. It's still the centerpiece, but it's now less pronounced and conspicuous.

Other improvements include a less busy back, whose integrated heart rate sensor is now flat instead of protruding, helping with the fit. The included band is also pretty decent in terms of feel, and comes in two sizes depending on your needs. Obviously, expect it to get awfully sweaty when exercising, but you needn't worry about damage to it—the whole thing is water-resistant, and we've had no issues washing our hands with it on. In fact, it's real easy to forget you have the wristband on since it's so lightweight.

In all, kudos to Samsung. The Gear Fit 2 feels and looks great, and its sporty design DNA ought to resonate well with buyers into their regimen.



Display and outdoor visibility


Samsung Gear Fit 2 fitness band Review

As mentioned, Samsung traded down the 1.84-inch display of the original Gear Fit for a smaller, but still perfectly adequate, 1.5-inch Curved Super AMOLED panel. In doing so, and having upped the resolution to 214 x 432 pixels, the image has visibly improved, with a density of 322 ppi (versus 245 ppi for its predecessor). Seeing as how you'll be mostly looking at the display from up close, this is more than sufficient for an extremely sharp image.

This being a fitness tracker, outdoor activity is assumed. Thankfully, the screen is bright enough for when you're trekking along a sunlit path, or comfortably dim for those midnight jogs.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Huawei Mate 9 review

POSITIVES Compact size for a large phone Porsche Design Mate 9 has a great display Excellent performance Feature-rich hardware Dual camera can take stunning photos Battery lasts for days EMUI 5 is a polished interface NEGATIVES Low-light camera could be better Porsche Design Mate 9 is expensive EMUI 5 still has a few quirks "Only" a Full HD screen on regular Mate 9 RATING Battery 9.5 Display 8.8 Camera 8.8 Performance 9.2 Software 8.8 Design 8.8 BOTTOM LINE The Mate 9 brings a familiar design with more powerful internals, a clever dual camera and a revamped software experience. The result is an excellent big-screen Android smartphone that is easily Huawei's best ever. 9 The spectacular  failure of the Galaxy Note 7  earlier this year has presented an opportunity for companies to create the best big-screen Android alter...
Post a Comment
Read more

Panasonic Lumix DMC-CM1 camera review

Panasonic Lumix DMC-CM1 camera review DPReview smartphone reviews are written with the needs of photographers in mind. We focus on camera features, performance, and image quality. Introduction It's been quite some time since Panasonic was a big name in the smartphone space, but the Lumix DMC-CM1, which was first announced at Photokina 2014, certainly is an appealing mobile device, especially to mobile photographers. That said, despite the CM1 having all the components and features of a smartphone, Panasonic describes it as a 'Communication Camera' in its marketing material. This does, to a degree, make sense. Looking at the CM1 and its spec sheet, it is quite hard to tell if this is a smartphone that puts a lot of emphasis on its camera or a digital camera with some bolted-on communication components.  The camera specification certainly goes way beyond current conventional smartphones. The CM1's 1-inch 20MP CM...
Post a Comment
Read more

Panasonic Lumix DC-GX850/GX800 review

Panasonic Lumix DC-GX850/GX800 review The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX850 (known as the GX800 and GF9 in some regions) is the brand’s most compact interchangeable lens camera (as of Spring 2017) and uses the same 16MP Four Thirds sensor as several of its siblings. Sold kitted with a 12-32mm collapsible zoom, stand-out features include a 180-degree flip-up touch LCD, Panasonic's excellent Depth-from-Defocus AF and 4K video capture. At its core the GX850 represents a combining of Panasonic's style-oriented GF-line with the ultra-compact-oriented GM-line and replaces both the GM5 and GF8. However, its most similar sibling currently on the market is the larger, EVF-sporting  GX85 . Key features: 16MP Four Thirds MOS sensor 4K/30/24p video capture 4K Photo mode for 8MP stills at 30 fps 5 fps bursts with continuous AF 3" 1.04M-dot touch LCD flips ups 180 degrees Wi-Fi Panasonic's core customer for this camera is the casual user seeking a carry-everywhere-cam fo...
Post a Comment
Read more