Fitness tracker watches are all the rage. And there are a lot of them on the market that range in pricing. The Apple Watch Series 2 is north of $300 while the Samsung Gear Fit 2 will run you about $150. Chinese tech manufacturer Huawei throws its hat into the digital fitness ring with the new Huawei Fit–a $129.99 no-frills, yet functional fitness tracker.
The Huawei Fit is a lightweight watch with an aluminum face and a polyurethane band (which can be swapped out for other band options). The watch pairs via Bluetooth with the Huawei Wear app available for both iPhone and Android.
Setup and Test Run
The Huawei Fit is quite easy to set up. It ships with a Quick Start Guide that includes a QR Code.
Using a QR reader on a phone, point the phone, take a picture of the QR Code, and the phone begins the syncing process with the watch.
The watch interface opens to a quick start screen that allows you to dive right into monitoring a workout: running, treadmill, walking, and cycling.
Huawei Fit will automatically identify walking or running status and record data, including goals such as distance, calories, times, fat burning, and aerobic endurance. You can set the goal most important to you.
At the completion of a session, the watch displays statistics such as distance, duration, average pace, calories, heart rate range, exercise result score, new records, VO2 max, and recovery time. This data flows into the app for tracking purposes.
One quirk I found annoying: If you accidentally launch a quick start running session, for example, the watch begins a 3-second countdown and then you have to stop the session by pressing a “stop†icon on the screen. Next, the message tells you your activity wasn’t recorded because it was less than a minute. It’s a relatively tedious process if you select a workout session that you want to end right away.
Other Features                                                                 Â
The fitness tracker offers sleep monitoring, although I have yet to try it out. According to the device’s documentation, it tracks sleeping and waking times and tells you if you slept deeply or lightly.
If your goal is to run a marathon, Huawei Fit has a runner’s training feature. It can design running plans for 5 km, 10 km, half marathons, or full marathons; give real-time guidance during a session, and export reports upon session completion.
Functional, But Basic
Huawei Fit works, but it’s not a terribly exciting device in either style or functionality next to Apple Watch and some other options on the market. Yet, if you are looking for a relatively low-cost fitness companion to achieve your workout goals, it can fill the role.