At a Glance: Quick Ratings
Heart Rate Functions
Fitness / Sport Features
Ease of Use
Battery Life
Where To Get It
A Deep Dive Into Garmin Vivosmart
The Vivosmart is the perfect activity tracking bracelet for those who want to keep track of daily steps. Working towards a daily activity goal is a great way of improving fitness and keeping motivated throughout the day.
The VivoSmart is an exceptional discrete piece of wearable tech that will provide everything you need, when paired with your iPhone or Android smartdevice, to help get you fitter and more active.
The Garmin Vivosmart Fitness Tracker and Activity monitor has been reviewed and tested by Tristan Haskins aka CardioCritic (formerly HeartRateMonitor UK)
Video Review
The Garmin Vivosmart is for everyone who recognises that a regular and small increase in daily activity can have a dramatic affect on your health and wellbeing.
It is for the person who is dedicated to becoming a fitter and healthier person but needs just a little bit of help to motivate them throughout the day. Just like the Vivofit 2 and the Polar Loop the Vivosmart is a daily activity tracker with built in accelerometers to monitor and feedback on your activity levels throughout the day.
As with most other activity bands at this price it also connects via Bluetooth™ to your Android or iOs device.
Once connected you have access to the Garmin Connect APP where you can link up with friends to further motivate yourself in to a daily exercise pattern.
The Vivosmart is the type of product I would give away on the NHS if I were in charge. Most people WANT to get a bit fitter, all the need is a daily motivator. That is precisely what this great activity band from Garmin does.
Garmin’s Promotional Videos
In this video by Garmin the team tell you what it’s all about. Join the movement with the Garmin Vívosmart.
It’s an activity tracker with smartphone notifications. Every time your phone receives a text, email or call the vívosmart will gently vibrate and automatically displays the details.
But more than that it monitors your daily steps, calories burnt, sleep time and much more.
Best Features
When you have had such a successful product as the Vivofit and the new Vivofit 2 it’s might seem like a challenge to bring out an even BETTER activity tracker than the original.
The Vivosmart is just a bit clever, just a bit sleeker, a bit more TECHIE and also a bit more expensive.
It’s a well designed product that includes ALL the good things from the Vivofit and adds to them.
Setting an Achievable Daily Goal
There is no point in an activity tracker telling you to exercise for 1 hour every day before breakfast and after dinner (unless you’re a pro-athlete).
It’s all about small progressive improvements to your lifestyle. We really like the way this product learns from you and your activity levels. The Vivosmart teaches itself about your current daily activity and sets you an ACHIEVABLE DAILY GOAL. Fitness is all about baby steps.
There’s no point trying to go from zero couch potato to hero 10K champion of Norfolk in 10 weeks. Those type of unachievable goals result, generally, in two things, disappointment and injury. This is one of the best features of the Vivosmart.
Improved Wearable Tech Features
The improved wearable tech functionality with the incoming call, text and email is great, especially when out on a bike ride or backpacking with your phone in a rucksack. Also, the FIND MY PHONE feature works really well.
The Vivosmart will help you locate your smartphone via Bluetooth (assuming it’s not too far away) and the music track and volume control is another nice tech feature, saving you from pulling your phone out of a pocket and risking dropping it!
- Displays steps, calories, distance and time of day
- A subtle vibration alert tells you when you receive calls, texts and emails from your smartphone
- Features an easy to use touch and swipe operation
- Inactivity alert reminds you when it time to move
- The clever auto goal keeps you challenged altering you daily goal as you move more and get fitter
- Support of ANT+ bike speed sensor to give cycle speed / distance
- Find my Phone feature.. CLEVER.. it shows you with arrows and bars where your phone is
Could have been better?
Hmmmm? That’s a hard question for such a great product. The only thing that really springs to mind is the battery life. It would be great to have a battery that last just a bit longer than a WEEK. Would that put me off buying one? No.
>>> Update, June 2021. With the release of the new Garmin FR225 there is NO DOUBT we will see a Garmin activity tracker with OPTICAL heart rate, that’s heart rate WITHOUT the need of a chest strap… Mio have their Fuse with activity tracking AND optional HR, as do Epson with their PS-100, so it’s not going to be long until we see a new Garmin.
Vivosmart Specification from the Garmin website
You will find a full technical specification breakdown of the Garmin Vivosmart activity bracelet here
Visit our Google Plus Photo Gallery
If you want to see more pictures of the Vivosmart as tested and photographed by us, please click the image below to visit our Photo Album on Google Plus
