Which cheap fitness tracker should you buy: Halo View or Fitbit Inspire 2?
- Heart-rate monitoring
- Activity/sleep tracking
- One year of Fitbit Premium
- Automatic exercise recognition
- Up to 10 days of battery life
- Lacks color AMOLED
- No extra perks
Want to keep things simple but efficient? The Fitbit Inspire 2 might be right up your alley. This fitness tracker might be small and unassuming, but it's mighty powerful with tons of activity/health tracking perks. You'll get nearly two weeks of battery life out of it, too.
A closer lookAmazon Halo View
- Heart-rate monitoring
- Activity/sleep tracking
- Movement Health
- AMOLED display
- A week of battery life
- No GPS options
- No extra perks
- Subscription required for many features
Are you seeking a fitness tracker that takes a different route? The Amazon Halo View fits that description. It offers basic activity/health tracking, but it also zooms in on details you may not have thought about such as body composition, tone of voice, and movement health.
Amazon Halo View vs. Fitbit Inspire 2: Affordable trackingFitness trackers are a great way to start your health journey, especially when you have affordable options like the Amazon Halo View and Fitbit Inspire 2 available to you. Whether you're a beginner or someone who prefers a basic fitness tracker to a more advanced smartwatch, these two devices have a lot to offer.
The Amazon Halo View is ideal for folks who want to take a slightly different approach. Rather than just focusing on basic activity/health tracking, this device looks at other details you might value. It examines your overall body composition, your tone of voice during conversations, and the health of your movement. Keep in mind a Halo membership is required to use these perks. If these aren't the details you're looking for, the Fitbit Inspire 2 will likely be a better fit for your needs since it offers insightful tracking details without requiring a subscription.
The Amazon Halo View digs deeper into the details
Pictured: Halo View
Sometimes, it's the details you don't think about that end up mattering the most. This may not be the case for everyone, but the Amazon Halo View is here to change the way you think about health tracking you can do at home.
| Amazon Halo View | Fitbit Inspire 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | Color AMOLED | Grayscale OLED |
| Sensors | Accelerometer, heart rate, SpO2, skin temperature | 3-axis accelerometer, optical heart rate sensor |
| Battery life | 7 days | 10 days |
| Water-resistance | 5ATM | 5ATM |
| Connected GPS | ||
| Automatic exercise recognition | ||
| Stress monitoring | ||
| Female health tracking |
It's not Amazon's first attempt at a fitness tracker, either. The original Amazon Halo band came first. When you compare the Amazon Halo View and Amazon Halo, you'll notice the main difference is that the original tracker boasted a distraction-free design without a display. While some people appreciated this, most users prefer a tracker with a display. The new Halo View meets that need with a stunning AMOLED touchscreen. The Amazon Halo View bands are interchangeable, too, and the battery can last for up to a week on a single charge.
The display changes the way you interact with your device. Previously, you had to rely on the app for information. Now, you can swipe through the display and view your step count, heart rate, and sleep score. You can also launch an activity, view notifications, and take a blood oxygen measurement.
If you want to access some of the more advanced features, you'll need to use the Halo app on your smartphone.
However, if you want to access some of the more advanced features, you'll need to use the Halo app on your smartphone with a Halo subscription. The Amazon Halo View comes with one year of Halo membership, but after that, you have to pay a $3.99 monthly fee. You do get access to the tracker's best features, including Movement Health, Body Composition, and Tone Analysis.
Tone Analysis is designed to help users gain a better understanding of how they sound during conversations with others. The feature will listen to your voice and analyze how positive or energized you sound. Previously, the original Halo band had a built-in microphone for this feature. As you can imagine, not everybody was a fan of this concept.
On the Halo View, Amazon addressed privacy concerns by removing the microphone from the device. Instead, you'll need to use the Halo app on your phone to use Tone Analysis. After recording a real-time Tone session on your phone, the temporary recordings are stored during processing before they're automatically deleted.
Pictured: Halo View
Movement Health is a unique feature that's designed to use computer vision (CV) and machine learning (ML) to assess your mobility, stability, and posture. You'll be instructed to perform certain movements while the app uses your camera phone to capture them. When the assessment is complete, you'll receive a personalized program that offers recommended corrective exercises to improve your movement.
Some users will find the Body Composition feature to be helpful as well. In the app, this feature will use your camera phone to take a 3D scan of your body. You'll receive detailed information about your current body fat percentage and how it compares to others in your age group.
If you're concerned about privacy with this feature, you're not alone. Amazon assures users that the scan images are processed in the cloud before they're automatically deleted. The images will only remain in the Halo App unless you choose to use the cloud backup feature.
Amazon will also be launching Halo Nutrition soon, which is another feature available within the Halo app. You'll have convenient access to a wide range of personalized tools to help you improve your nutrition. For instance, you'll be able to plan a week of healthy meals. Amazon understands everyone has different needs, so you can plan your meals around various dietary restrictions, including keto, vegetarian, vegan, paleo, and Mediterranean.
The Fitbit Inspire 2 is simple and efficient
Pictured: Fitbit Inspire 2
There's a lot to love about the Fitbit Inspire 2. If you're familiar with the previous models, you'll notice the design hasn't changed drastically over the years. Most users will appreciate how lightweight and compact it is, which makes it perfect for workouts. Not to mention, the battery can last for up to 10 days on a single charge.
This fitness tracker also comes in three color options, including black, Lunar White, and Desert Rose. You can change the Fitbit Inspire 2 bands whenever you'd like thanks to the interchangeable band system. Whether you're looking for something fancier or more casual, there are numerous options to pick from. If you'd prefer to wear the tracker as a clip-on accessory or use it as a pedometer, you can do that as well.
If this isn't your first time using a Fitbit device, then you know these wearables are packed with many activity/health tracking perks. While it might be quite as advanced as some of the Android smartwatches on the market, it will be more than enough for casual athletes and fitness enthusiasts.
Pictured: Fitbit Inspire 2
The Inspire 2 offers heart-rate monitoring as a standard feature. With previous models, you had to pay more for a model with this sensor. Additionally, you'll receive one year of Fitbit Premium for free when you buy your tracker. You'll have access to many features that are not reliant on this optional subscription service, including automatic exercise recognition, Active Zone Minutes, sleep tracking, stress monitoring, guided breathing sessions, female health-tracking, and more.
Some people are looking for a wearable with a lot of bonus perks. Considering the Inspire 2's low price point, it shouldn't come as a big surprise that what you see is what you get. In comparison to the Amazon Halo View, the Inspire 2 doesn't have a color AMOLED display or SpO2 monitoring.
In the grand scheme of things, these are small sacrifices to make for everything else you get. Most importantly, you aren't required to have an ongoing subscription to use the tracker's main features. If you're looking for premium features such as onboard GPS and NFC payments, you'll have to stretch your budget a bit further for a more advanced tracker or smartwatch.
Amazon Halo View vs. Fitbit Inspire 2: Which should you buy?Pictured: Fitbit Inspire 2
Deciding between the Amazon Halo View and Fitbit Inspire 2 will depend on a few factors. They're priced the same, so you'll get a great value with either option, but you'll want to consider whether you're willing to commit to an ongoing subscription and what kind of details you want to track.
If you want a device that is focused on very specific details about your health and well-being, the Amazon Halo View may be a good fit. Features such as Movement Health, Body Composition, and Tone Analysis give you helpful insight that might help you on your fitness journey. However, the main perks on this tracker depend on the Halo membership, so be prepared for another monthly subscription.
Perhaps you'd prefer a more traditional fitness tracking experience without a required subscription. If so, the Fitbit Inspire 2 might be a better fit for your needs. It doesn't have an AMOLED display, but you also get a few extra days of battery life on the Inspire 2. You'll get plenty of details with the health and fitness tracking features on this device such as automatic workout recognition, heart-rate monitoring, advanced sleep tracking, stress monitoring, female health-tracking, and more. This is the best option for casual athletes who want to track their health and fitness without a required subscription plan.
Simple can be betterFitbit Inspire 2
A reputation for greatness
$80 at Amazon$100 at Best Buy$82 at Walmart
If you've had the pleasure of experiencing a Fitbit device, you know it's one of the best brands out there for tracking your health. The Inspire 2 is one of the most affordable options and it's still packed with useful features. What's more, a subscription isn't required.
A closer lookAmazon Halo View
Different details
The Amazon Halo View is a unique tracker, especially when you consider the type of details it focuses on. You'll have to decide if these details interest you. More importantly, you'll have to decide if the Halo membership is worthwhile.