Fitbit Versa Review 2020

The Fitbit Versa continues to be a Best Seller Smartwatch even in 2020 and for a lot of Good Reasons!

At the end of 2017, Fitbit brought to the market its first true smartwatch The Ionic. Right after they acquired the Peeble company (and their team of developers) they put all the effort into getting to the next level and create a tracker with an amazing operating system.

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So it wasn’t a surprise that the Ionic was a Feature packed smartwatch having the ability to track a wide range of fitness metrics and provides onscreen workout tutorials, but also stores your music, streams to Bluetooth headphones, runs third-party apps and makes contactless payments.

Something that wasn’t a surprise either was the $300 price that comes along. It’s true that compared with the other smartwatches on the market such as the Apple Watch and Samsung’s Gear Sport that are even higher priced it wasn’t such a crazy price.

But for those that didn’t like the price or the design of the Ionic Fitbit put his smartwatch game to the next level featuring the cool and improved VERSA that just in terms of price is already a winner compared with any other smartwatch on the market at just $200 and with an operating system that now gives you the most optimized user interface that reduces the swipes that you need to see your daily info.

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Including almost the same features as the Ionic except for the GPS, this Smartwatch is one of the best looking tracker on the market and with a cool and sleek design that is both small and good looking!

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Fitbit Versa Review Design and Display

The Versa is no the updated version of any model that you are going to see on the Fitbit family, with a cool and sleek design that looks more like the Apple Watch, and the company named as the ‘Squircle’ design since it has a square face with rounded edges.

For those that didn’t like the design of the Ionic, the Versa came with a new face that tries to make it up for the big and square design from the latest smartwatch. The Versa looks cool and is not such an eye-catcher so you can focus on what is happening on the screen stats.

The Fitbit Versa screen size is 34mm diagonal, by 24.075mm high, and 24.075mm wide. If well the smartwatch is unisex is more focused on women than men, it comes in 3 different standard and classic designs on an anodized aluminum case:

•Rose Gold watch case and a Peach silicon band

• Silver Pebble watch case and a Grey silicon band

• Black watch case and a Black silicon band

The bands that come along made from silicon are “stain-proof” making it a great partner for work out and intense exercises.

Then you have the woven Special Edition bands and metal strap options these ones are more stylish options, although they are more for regular exercise not so much for heavy workouts. These bands are available in 2 different choices:

• Rose Gold watch case and a Lavender woven band

• Graphite watch case and a Charcoal woven band

A cool addition to the Special Edition Versa is that includes a black silicon band for swimming since the woven canvas strap is not waterproof. Have in mind that the woven straps are only available with the Special Edition Versa, and not separately.

In case that you would like to get separate wristbands, there are 2 extra that are available for customization. You can choose from White and Periwinkle Blue colors for just $24.95

As for the Versa’s display, it’s a vibrant, colorful touchscreen with a resolution of 300-x-300 pixels and a brightness up to 1,000 nits. This means that even in direct sunlight or underwater it’s easily visible, even when not turned up to the maximum brightness capacity.

The touch commands are really improved on this model compared with the one that the Ionic sports that seemed to suffer a little from latency. Now the commands are more fluid and uninterrupted.

The Versa also has a bigger amount of recent historical data for you to check on the display at a glance, which is a great improvement from the Ionic one, although now they also add this same look for the Ionic as well.

Fitbit Versa Features

Just like the best smartwatches out there the Versa is full of fitness features just like the Fitbit Ionic, with the only major omission being GPS. Although you can connect the GPS on your smartphone and have the data of your smartwatch running, the thing is that is not a built-in GPS.

If you are used to running with your phone is not a big deal but in case that you would like to run phone-free then the Ionic’s built-in GPS is a better choice.

The lack of GPS is the reason for the big difference in the price when compared with the Ionic so is something to have in mind.

Tracking your workout on the Versa is really straightforward and works in the exact same way as on the Ionic.

Whether it’s running, swimming, cycling, or HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) that you would like to track, you will get a dedicated option for iron the Exercise app, that you will get access as the first option in the main menu carousel. You will get the choice to pick between Run, Bike, Swim, Weights, Treadmill,  Workout and Interval Timer.

Lest say that you try to monitor your run you will select the Running tab from the Exercise option by swiping left from the home screen, then tap go and you are ready to go.

But that’s not all! the Fitbit Versa can also track your Steps, Distance, Floors Climbed, Calories burned,  and Active Minutes, and it also includes an automatic Sleep and Activity Tracking. You will also get the Move Reminders that will help you get moving at least once an hour (in the daytime) for 250 steps as a minimum.

It uses Fitbit’s wrist-based PurePulse heart-rate monitor, which can be used to improve the efficiency of your exercise, workouts, and sleep, as well as monitoring heart health.

Another cool addition just like the Ionic you will get the SpO2 sensor that estimates the amount of oxygen in the blood so you can monitor blood oxygenation during sports activity. On the health side, your SpO2 value is an important indicator – if it drops below 95 percent, it could be a sign of poor blood oxygenation (hypoxia).

For swimming, the Versa is also great since it can go up to 50 meters inside the water. This is the 3rd waterproof tracker from Fitbit the only other 2 trackers before were the Flex 2 and the Ionic. At the very least it means you don’t need to take it off when stepping into the shower. At best, it offers basic swimming tracking – including the ability to count laps and how many calories you’ve burned up and down the pool.

Fitbit Versa Women Health

The Versa has a cool focus on women, Fitbit includes with this model a Female Health Tracking, that gives women the ability to stay in tune with their bodies and monitor changes, by just logging details of their menstrual cycle they can get dynamic prediction data in the Fitbit app. This feature doesn’t exist on any other smartwatch as an included function there are some others that offer the ability to connect by using a third-party app.

The primary intent of Fitbit is to help women understand how their menstrual cycle is connected to their overall health. According to its research, 80 % of women weren’t aware of how many phases are in a menstrual cycle, and more than 70 % could not identify properly the average length of a cycle.

By using this feature now women can log their menstrual cycle data, and record symptoms such as headaches, acne, and cramps. This would help to dynamic cycle predictions and know where they are in their cycle and when to expect a period by using Fitbit’s cycle algorithm that will be improving and getting more accurate as you keep using it. So now women can check at a glance on their watch and know where they are in their cycle.

This Feature is available to all Fitbit models but only the Ionic and Versa can get this information on their watch. The data is delivered to Versa’s new Today screen, which is available by swiping up from the bottom of the device. The same is true for the Fitbit Ionic.

Is a great addition also for young girls to star to learn more about their menstrual cycle, ovulation, fertility and common misconceptions with educational content through the Fitbit app.

This information also can be helpful for fertility planning and general reproductive health.

Have in mind that in case you don’t want this data you can choose to hide it, so it’s an option. And, obviously, men can just not enable it.

Performance and battery life

The Versa’s battery lifespan is not the most impressive from the Fitbit bunch, it can go up to 4 days so compared with the other smartwatch Ionic that can last 5 days is a bit less. Although we tested out and with daily use the watch could hold up for 4 days with no problem so that is a good thing.

It’s clear that depending on the use that you put on the tracker will make the biggest difference, so if you workout 3 times a day or 3 times a week the stamina of the battery is going to vary. As well if you track your sleep all night or get the brightness setting set to low or high will also make a difference.

We tested using it for a full 24 hours, including 2 intense workouts and sleep tracking as well, after that the tracker was on 72% of charge. At this pace, the tracker was on for 4 days on a row without the need for a charge at all.

For charging the tracker Fitbit doesn’t use a USB charger so you need to charge the smartwatch using the special Fitbit charger. Have in mind that the Versa’s proprietary charger includes a clip-in dock that makes it simpler to charge compared to the magnetic pin on the Ionic.

Fitbit Versa VS Fitbit Ionic

A good Fitbit Versa Review needs a comparison!. So now is time to compare the 2 Fitbit smartwatches the Ionic and Versa. They have a lot of similarities and some differences when it comes to design, features, and price.

The Versa comes with a smaller watchcase that has in mind all those costumers that didn’t like the big design from the Ionic. It’s smaller in all dimensions, and lighter, too, is not that the Ionic was huge and heavy, but the display was definitely larger.

Versa screen size: 34mm diagonal, by 24.075mm high, and 24.075mm wide.

Ionic screen size: 35.99mm diagonal by 21mm high, and 29.23mm width.

The Versa comes with almost all the same features that are included in the Ionic’s such as the same health and fitness metrics tracked, as well as the apps, notifications music storage and control.

The Fitbit Coach comes on the 2 trackers, but Fitbit Pay works only on the Special Edition of the Versa in the US.

Both are water-resistant up to 50m deep.

The biggest difference apart from the size is the Versa’s lack of built-in GPS. You can only use it by synching the GPS on your phone so in case you would like to run phone-free the Ionic is the best option. And for those looking to use the Fitbit pay app, the Versa only includes this choice on the more expensive Special Edition.

Hen it comes to the accessories the Versa is the winner having more options and the cool metal straps that are not available for the Ionic.

In terms of battery lifespan, the Ionic comes first with 5 days of battery life, compared to the 4 days that come with the Versa. But only one day extra is not such a big deal when it comes to the overall.

So other than the $100 price difference, the size, the built-in GPS and the wider choice of Versa straps the Ionic and Versa are essentially the same smartwatches.

Fitbit Versa VS Apple Watch

Most people compare this tracker not only with the Ionic but as well with the biggest rival the Apple Watch, that it’s also very similar in terms of looks.

When it comes to price the Versa has no rival, with the $169 price tag compared with the Apple watch that is on the $329 range, and even on his first and older version the Series 1 it cost $249, so there’s no competition here.

Another thing to have in mind is that depending on your phone you will have a different experience as well, form starters the Apple watch would not synch with any Android phone, but the Versa works with iPhone, Android, and even Windows Phone.

In terms of size, both are 38mm but the Apple watch also offers a more expensive 42mm size, on the other hand, the Versa is more lightweight.

For fitness the variety that comes along in the Versa is greater without a doubt, the Apple Watch has a fitness app but the Fitbit one is way better with the coach and the multifunctions.

In the extra Apps department, the winner is the Apple Watch since you have a wide range of apps to add for games, productivity and much more, although some of the larger initial partners (Twitter, Instagram, eBay) aren’t updating their apps for the Watch.

But in terms of apps for fitness and health, the Versa is a better choice. So in case you are all about fitness and health apps, the Fitbit Versa is the best pick, but if you would like to have all sorts of apps on your wrist then the Apple Watch is the one for you.

When it comes to battery life the Versa can be 4 days on while the Apple can only go for up to 18 hours so there’s no competition here,

For notifications the Versa allows you to check Caller ID, texts, Calendar alerts although the Apple Watch comes with full integration with your iPhone making it able to respond to messages and texts, and answer calls. Fitbit will release Quick Replies for Android users in the near future.

So when it comes to iPhone users that would like to have access to a wider range of apps the Apple Watch can be a good fit, but for fitness and health plus better battery life and for a better price the Versa is the greater choice.

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Should you buy a Fitbit Versa?

We were all about the Ionic when it first released since is one of the best smartwatches and is so packed with features that made it irresistible for us. So is cool to see that the Versa comes with almost all the same features but for a cheaper price.

When it comes to health and fitness there no better than a Fitbit and the Versa also includes all the cool functions that were on the Ionic such as the Fitbit coach or the SpO2 sensor, plus the women health tracker that makes a cool new addition to the Fitbit family.

So if you were looking for a reliable smartwatch that doesn’t cost too much this is the best choice on today’s market and is not for nothing that since its release is already a best seller on Amazon.

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Related:

• Fitbit Versa 2 Review
• Fitbit Comparison

Resources:

• Wired – Versa Review
• Toms Guide – Versa Review 2020
• Tech Radar – Fitbit Versa